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t5he 
HISTO'RICAL 



TubUjihed Under the Axijipiees 

of the Le'Roy H/^fortcal So^ 

ciely, bifith Interesting Articlejt 

yrom Eighteen i/iuthors J^^\> 




J. KEENAN'S BANK 

ESTABLI8HEI>'ie72 

A GENERAL BANKING BUSINESS 
TRANSACTED 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 




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1.E ROY, ILLIHOIS 

J. O. CLEVENGER. PRINTER 
1904 



Published Under the Auspices of the 
Society, with InterestinQ Articles from 



LeRoy Historical 
Bighteen Authors 



,i-(o '-to 



|4li»4feifejftiSil;il;feiljfeifejfeifei^;feil4k^ 



Russell Brothers 



Conduct a 



General 

Painting 
Business 



Icnluding: Paper Hanging: 
and Interior Decorating. 
All work first class. Prices 
as reasonable a first class 
WORK CAN BE DONE 



LeRoy, Illinois 



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;^ STAPLEAND FAN CY GROCERS ^ 

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FLOUR 
FRUITS 
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I LEROY. ILLINOIS I 

49 ^^^«^^^^^^^SK:^^^^^^^^ 



llf^injirance Does J 

UFB INSURANCE 

Lifts mortgatres 
Educates orphans 
Preserves the family 
Cultivates saving habits 
Lightens the load of care 
Keeps the wolf from the door 
Gives repose to the rich man 
Gives courage to the poor man , 

Builds a barrier to the alms house ! 

Enables a man to live up to his income J 
Supports the credit of the business man ! 
Lays the fundation of home and indepen- • 
dence S 

Encourages the marriage of prudent men j 

and women < 

The Pacific Mutual Insurance Co < 

„ O^ 0/H.IFOHNIH I 

Positively provides all this through its I 

Model Policies : 

BEST IN THE WORLD I 

E. D. Riddle, Agent. LeRoy. Illinois ; 




yi 



Mopell B. Reynolds 



TONSORIAl PARIOKS 

Best line of Cigars. 
Laundry sent every 
Monday and Thursday 



IL 



LEROY 



ILLINOIS 



CO J^ TE /f TS 

The Pioneers of Empire Township - - - - - 1 

Pioneer Fencing^ in Empire Township _ _ - - 5 

Pioneer Cooking in Empire Tovvn!<hip ----- 9 

Pioneer Fencing in Empire Township - - - - 13 

Pioneer Transportation - ------la 

Good Old Times in Empire Township - - - - 18 

Pioneer SchooU of Empire Township ----- 20 

Churches of Empire Township ----- 22 

Old Books - - - -----25 

Ye Old-Time Spelling: School ------ 27 

Newspapers of Empire Township - - - - - 29 

Old-Time Music - - -----31 

War Times in Empire Township - - - - - 33 

Inventions - --------35 

Results of Tiling ---------36 

Historical Reminiscences - - - ----- 37 

Geologj' - --------38 

Indians -- ' ----39 

First Band - - - - - - - 40 



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R E F A C E . l>*— 



£ EARLY in December 1903, the officers of the McT.ean Countv 
___^ Flistorlcal Society held a meeting in LeRoy for the purpose of 
taking: measures to celebrate the Seventy-fifth Anniversary of 
of the settlement of Buckles Grove. The time for sa.d celebration 
had already past for more than a year, but it was determined to cele- 
brate anyway, just as was done at The World's Fair in Chicago, a year 
after date, and is now being done at St. Louis World's Fair, in cele- 
brating the centennial of the Louisiana Purchase, a year after date. At 
the ab've mentioned meeting an organization was efifected undtr the 
name of The LeRoy 1 istorical Society. T. L. Buck, was elected 
president, and James Coon, secretary. Meetings were held twice a 
month during the winter. Writers were appointed on eighteen differ, 
ent subjects, all of whom, completed the work assigned them. The 
meeting was held in the M' thodist church in LeRoy on the 22d of 
April; 1904. George P. Davis, president of the McLean County His- 
torical Society, presided, and E. M. Prince, secretary of said Society, 
assisted in the exercises. Meetings were held in the afternoon e.nd 
evening, and were largely attended and much interest manifested. 

The officers of the County Society gave their consent for the local 
Society lo publish the papers read at the meeting in pamphlet form 
A c-mmittee, composed of T. L. Buck John McConnell and S. H. 
West, was appointed. They contracted with Mr. Clevenger, of the 
LeRoy Eagle, to do the work in magazine form, and in good style 
and finish. 

The Old Settlers are all gone. Many interesting facts and inci- 
dents have passed from remembrance with their departure. But 
imperfect as our work mav be, we feil that the facts narrated in the pa- 
p( rs and read at our celebration wdl become of more interest to those 
who come after us as the )(esrs go by. 

T, L. Buck 
John McConnell 
S. H. West 

Committee 



PROGRAMME 

AFTERNOON 

Selections From Old-time Music Miss Bessie Smith 

Early Pioneers Simeon H. West 

Early Newspapers John S. Harper 

Good Old Times Georg^e M . Hedrick 

Pioneer Farming- John McConnell 

Pioneer Fencing: Thomas L, Buck 

Vocal Duett, Mrs. J. Avey and Mrs. S. D. VanDeventer 

Pioneer Schools Mrs. A. Murray 

Fraternities E. D. Riddle 

Churches Mrs. 1). Young 

Wiir Records J. R. Covey 

EVBNINO 

Music Orchestra 

A. L. Coffey, Wm. Stoddart, Lee King, Chas. Williams 
Chas. Schuler and Miss Oral Buck. 

Tiling Joseph Keenan 

Pioneer Cooking- Mrs, George M. Hedrick 

Geology Rev. W. E. Leavitt 

Vocal Solo, "Robin Adair" Nellie Cope 

Early Books Mrs. Jno. McConnell 

Music, "Old Folks' Reverie" Orchestra 

Transportation Mrs. J. V. Smith 

Round, "Three Blind Mice" Mrs. Avey, Mrs. VauDeventer 

Miss Oral Buck, W. E. Lucas and L. P, Baum. 

Old Time Music N. G. Humphrey cind A. B. Conkling 

Song, "How Tedious and Tastless the Hours" Audie.ice 

Fife Solo.'. Leonard Chase 

Spelling Schools Mrs. L. A. Rike 

Song, "Rain on the Roof" Quartette 

Early Inventions Charles Williams 

Music Orchestra 

J. S. Coon 
Mrs. J. Grizzicll 
Miss Oral Buck 
Programme Committee 
Some of the above selections were read by Mrs. L. B. Young, 
Grace Cox, Ruth Simpson and Mrs. Rhodes, of Bloomington. 



The Pioneers of Empire Township /a m 

•By S. H. tVtJl 

^^ «^* i^* 

C' HE TERR TORY embraced in Empire Town- This was the condition here when in 1827 John 

ship is eight miles long and six miles wide. Buckles, a native of Virginia, in quest of a new 
The middle fork of Salt creek enters the home, located in what has since that time been 
township on the north line in Section 2 and passes known as Buckles' Grove. It derived its name 
in a souchv\est course the entire length of the from him as the first settler. By all the rules of 
tiwnship. The west fork of Salt creek enters the propriety, the name of Buckles ought to have been 
township frcm the west in Section 30 and flows in given to the township. It ought to be given to it 
a southeast course .. ^ . . 

to the junction 
with the middle 
fork in Section 33. 
'J'hese streams 
form about eleven 
miles of running 
water the year 
around in the 
towhship. About 
nine miles of this 
distance was bor- 
dered by a very 
fine grove of heavy 
timber, consist- 
ing of the differ- 
ent varieties of 
oak, walnut, hick- 
ory and other val- 
uabletimber. The 
area of this grove 
was about seven 
thou sand acres. 
In addition to this 
there was about 
two thousand 
acres of fine tim- 
ber along the 
south side of Old 
Town timber, in- 
cluded in Empire 
Township. The 
remainder of the 



yet. Mr. Buckles 
was the laVgest 
and strongest 
man that ever 
lived in the town- 
ship. He built a 
rude cabin and 
made his livingby 
huntingand farm- 
ing. He lived but 
a few years, and I 
have been unable 
to learn anything 
particular in re- 
gard to his char- 
acteristics. 

Aqu il la Cono- 
way and his son, 
Harvey, settled 
here in 1828. Na- 
than T. Brittin 
and Tliomas O. 
Rutledge came in 
1829. There set- 
tled here in 1830 
Henry C r u m - 
baughand his son. 
J. H. L., Daniels 
Crumbaugh and 
sons, William, 
John and Leonard 
A. They were 
from Kentucky. 

townvhip consisted of some twenty-two thousand Michael Dickerson and sons, Robert F., Henry C. 
acres of beautiful, rich, undulating prairie. Thus and C.ileb P., and DanielJackson, James Rutledge, 
we find a combination of the richest gifts of na- Silas Watters and sons, John and Chalton, James 
ture, abundance of water and timber and beautiful Merrifield ;ind son, Otho, Levi Westfall, Jas. Van 
rich prairie, a combination that cannot be excelled Deventer, James and Jerry Walden all settled in 
by any spot on earth. various parts of the township in the early thirties. 

This was an ideal location for the home of the James Bishop of Ohio first came here in 1831, but 
farmer and stockman. For unknown centuries did not settle until several years later. Reuben 
this beautiful land had been occupied by the birds Clearwater, Amos Conoway, James Conoway and 
of the air, the beasts of the w-lderness and the Joshua Hale all settled here at an early date, 
paths of roving bands of Indians, some of whom Aaron Williams came in 1831, Andrew DefTen- 
had a camping place in Section II, in the edge of baugh, Abram Buckles and his brothers, Peter, 
Old Town timber. Thomas and William came in 1832. T. J. Barnelt 




Simeon H. XOtJl 



THE HISTORICAL M E M O I R R 



also came in 1S3:. Moses Dunhip and son, John, 
located here in 1834. P. C. Eskew came to the 
counti-v in 1834 but did not locate in the township 
until 184f). James Kimler, Sidney D. OaUer and 
K. E. Greenman came to the county at a very early 
date but did not locate here until the early forties. 
Mahlon Bishop came here in 1835. James Wiley 
' and his brother, Thomas, located here in the same 
year. In the same year came John W. Rraddeley 
and his son, John C. They were from Enjfland. 
Isaac Murphy and James Lucas settled here it or 
before this date. T. I). Gilmore of Kentucky, 
Elij.ih Hedrick. PSlisha Gibbs and son, Simeon, 
all located here in 1836. Stephen Conklinfr came 
here about the same time. Hiram Buck and son, 
Thomas, James Lincoln, Robert and Jo'm Barr 
and Thomas M. Whitaker all came in 1837. The 
town of LeRoy was laid out by Gridley and 
Covel of Bloomingfton in 1836. Minor Bishop, Levi 
and Daniel Knott, John and Jessie Knrr located 
here about 1840. Thomns Martin, Henry Rice and 
Hamilton Gilbert were here at an early date. 
MontS'^mcry Crumbaurrh located here in 1841, 
' There \yerc probably other earlv settlers whose 
names, have not reached me. Imperfect as the 
above jist may be it includes the main bulk' of that 
bind of hardy and resolute pioneers who left their 
old homes in Virg-inia, Marvland, Tennessee. In- 
diana. Pennsylvania, New Yorlc, New Enoland, 
Ohio. Kentucky, Entrland and Ireland and located 
here duringf the first fourteen years of the settle- 
ment of the township, at:d who in the face of all 
manner, of hardships, privations, inconveniences 
and siclcness laid the foundation for the g-rand and 
superb conditions existing today. Money was so 
scarce for many years that no one could hope to 
obtain much of it, and faine was an unknown de- 
sire among them. Many of them came to malce for 
' themselves, pew homes in a new country. Others 
came for the love of hunting and the luxury of liv- 
ing on the frontier — the same spirit that animated 
Daniel Boone, Simon Kenton and Kit Carson in 
their ?dventurous lives. This spirit was well ex- 
pressed by Isaac Murphy, a typical pioneer of this 
township, when he told the writer hereof that he 
never saw a covered wagon going west without 
wanting to go there too. At that time Mr. Murphy 
owned one of the finest locations, of 100.0 acres, in 
the county. The. early settlers of Empire Town- 
ship. experienced^ all the hardships that were met 
by all of the pioneers of other parts of the country. 
They lived in log cabins daubed with mud, with 
chimneys built with sticks and mud, puncheon 
floors and clapboard roofs held in place by weight 
poles. Doors made of split stuff pinned together 
with wooden pegs and hung on wooden hinges. 
The furniture, in most cases, was such as they 
could make themselves. Their clothing was made 



at home, of material raised or prepared bv them- 
selves. Their leather was tanned from skins of 
animals in wooden troughs dug out of logs. The 
food of the first settlers consisted of wild meats 
and corn meal crushed in a mortar. In some cases, 
the corn had been frost-bitten. They bad a full 
experience in the winter of the deep snow in 18. >0 
and '31 and in the sudden Ireez- of 1836, but these 
thi.igs have been told so often I will not re|ieat 
them here. Tradition says that the first mill con- 
structed in the township consisted of two holders 
dressed down to the shape of mill stones, and the 
cipacitv of the mill was five bushels of corn per 
day. The price of corn in early times was five 
cents per bushel and no market at that. It was 
nearly as difficult to pay for land at $1 25 per acre 
as it is now at $100 per acre. While Empire Town- 
ship was one of the finest locations for the stock 
business in the tounty it seems there were few ex- 
tensive dealers in that line among the early set- 
tlers, at least not on the scale th.it prevailed in 
some other settlements. James Bshop was the 
larger-t cattle feeder and dealer in this vicinity and 
became the wealthiest citizen, owning 3.000 acres 
of land at his death. Many of the old timers 
acquired good homes. A few became wealthy. 
Some moved west and others lived in moderate cir- 
cumstances. It is believed that all th^ old set 
except Sidney D. Baker, who now lives in Council 
Grove, Kansas, have gone to the oilier shore. 

When the people here first had cattle and hoo-s 
to sell the principal market was Galetia, which was 
much more important at that time than Chicago. 
Galena was the center of the lead mining businesr-- 
hence consumed much beef .and pork.' When the 
grain trade of Chicago began the settlers here 
raised wheat, cut it with cradles, bound it by hand, 
theshed it with flails, or trampled it out with 
horses on a smooth spot of hard ground, then 
threw the wheat and chaff up in the air till the 
chalT was blown away, then lo.Tded the wheat on 
ox wagons and hauled it to Chicago, taking a scythe 
along to cut slough grass with whiiMi to bridge soft 
places on the way. The driver camped out, and 
the oxen fed on free grass, so there were no ex- 
penses. It took about two weeks to make the trip. 

The wheat would sell for about 37 to 40 cents 
per bushel. The return load would consist of salt 
and groceries. Sometimes lumber was hauled 
back. Previous to this period iron utensils were 
very scarce. Plows had to be taken a long distance 
to be repaired. Iron wedges used in making rails 
were so scarce that when there was one in a neigh- 
borhood there would sometimes be quite a conten- 
tion as to who should have the first chance to bor- 
row it. With so little meney in the country it is 
not strange that the colleclion of debts was slow 
business. It is said that John Buckles, though an 



THEHISTOKICAL ME MOIRE 3 
easy g-i)ing- man, became so exasperated at-one But I luve made one omission that must be 
time at a delinquent customer that he g-avc the fel- filled out. There was one settlement in Empire 
low a sound thrashing- and then told him that his Township that has never been mentioned in any 
account was settled in full.- This mode of settle- history. In Sections 1 and 2 along- the south side 
ment had.. a very healthy effect in the neigfhbor- of Old To.vn timber was a settlement that was for 
hood. I regfret very much that I cannot learn many years known as ''HeH's Neck." Never be- 
more about the life and traits of John Buckles, fore has any historian had the ner-ve to write this 
The characteristics of those pioneers are of special ug-ly repellant name. It derived its name from 
interest to me. the fact that there were no church members thf re. 
The educational, religious and old style farming The people were children of nature and lived close 
and other "departments having been assigned: to to mother nature. They could not discover by any 
other writers I will not engage in those sul.jecis visible signs, that nature had set apart one day as 
to any extent, but dwell more on .the peculiar per-- better tlian another, consequently they spent their 
sonal traits of some of the old pioneers. The Sundays as best suited their convenience. If they 
Buckles brothers were honest, easy going people, had a little work that needed doing they did it, 
strictly religious, good neighbors^ and good citi- or the boys wanted a horse race they had it. But 
zons. Silas Watters was a standard man, a devout the preachers occasionallv foufi'd their way there 
Methodist, an upright, influential man. Reuben and always received a cordial welcome. The meet- 
Clearwater was a very plain and devout man. The ings were held in the Brittin school house, which 
Bishops were ardent Methodists and upright was a log cabin of the primitive style. The people 
men. Similar things can be said of most of the old all turned out to those meetings, and droves of dogs 
pioneers. James Lincoln was one of thefirst, jf followed, and sometimes engaged .:in lively lights 
not the first school teacher in the townshi.p., Jle around and even in the house during service. It 
was from Pennsylvania, well educated and the best is rehited that one of the most prominent men of 
read man in the settlement. Later on he practiced the Neck used to work on Sunday until he saw the 
law in LeRoy. He was an eloquent and forcible preacher coming, when lie, would go to church, 
orator. Had he possessed more energy he would take the preacher home to dinner and as soon as 
have made his mark high up among his fellow the preacher would leave he would go to work 
men. R. F. Dickerson was another lawyer of very again. ' r i 
bright mind. Perhaps no man has made a stronger Isaac Murphy, and Nathan T. Brittin were the 
impress in the township than Hiram Buck. He most p'r.ominent citizens in the settlement. They 
took the world easy until fifty years old, when lie were the'bankers" or money loaneTS; not only of 
left r>eRoy, went out on a farm, began to branch "Hell's Neck"' but all the surrounding country, 
out in farming and cattle feeding, becoming a large Their rates were not the same . Mr. Murphy 
land owner and. becoming m ire energetic up to the charged fifteen per cent interest and Mr. Brittin 
time of his death at a very old age. He filled many would charge twelve per eent. Mr. Brittin wou'd 
offices of honor and died respected by all. James trust any one, aud would take a note'for twenty- 
Wiley was a standard man who was highly hon- five cents as well as for SIOOO. He neVer tried to 
ored. James Bishop has already been noted. collect the pi'incipal, hut always made diligent ef- 
Mahlon Bishop was elected and served one term forts to collect what he called "that littTe dab of 
in the legislature with credit. Minor Bishop was interest." And he would take anytlung in pay- 
held in very high esteem. The Conow.iys and ment of interest — a load of corn, a calf, colt or old 
Rutledges were highly respected. T. J. Barnctt wagon, then sell the same to someone, and take, 
and the Braddeleys were prominent business men their note, and if he was scarce of paper would 
of high standing. Daniel Crumbaugh was a so'dier sometimes write the note on the back mi some 
of the war of 1812. He served under Col. R. M. other note. Mr. Brittin was a good, kind hearted , 
Johnson in the battle of Thames, in which the man, and was truly the poor man's friend. He 
great war chief, Tuecumseh, was killed by Co', was a soldier in the Black Hawk war. 
Johnson, who was afterwi.rds vice president of Isaac Murphy was also a soldier in the Black 
the United States. Mr. Crumbaugh and his broth- Hawk war, and would sometimes tell of helping to 
er, Henry, were men of Stirling honor and integ- chase Bhick Hawk all over the northern country, 
ri.y, and left a goodly heritage to their children. but admitted in the most important chase, he. 
It would be a great pleasure to go on and tell of Black Hawk was in the rear and the whites were 
the good qualities of all the old pioneers, but lack making record time in trying to getaway. Mr. 
of space forbids. Suffice it to say tnat taken all Murpiiy was a man of striking appearance, tail. 
in all they were a goodly hand of hardy men and well formed, fine features and eyes piercing as an 
women who have left an impresson this community eagle, ami of quick nervous, emp'riatic action and 
that time will never efface. speech. He was restless as a caged lion, and never 



4 TIIKHISTORI 

satisfied. He was very rou^l) outwardiy, but had 
a tender heart. After the completion of the over- 
land railroad he sold his valuable possessions here 
at a very low price and moved by rail to San Fran- 
cisco, and thence by sea to Oresfon. While going 
up the Columbia river the captain of the ship told 
Mr. Murphy he was too old to go tea new counti y. 
He at once answered that he could start a grave 
yard if nothing else, and speedily fullfiUed the 
prophecy, as he died in a few months after his 
arrival. 

In the early fifties I was well acquainted with 
every man, woman and child in ''HelTs Neck" 
and am free to say that I never knew a more hon- 
est or kindhearted set of people. The name of 
the settlement long since passed out of use. 

No absolutely correct history has ever been or 
can be written. These sketfches are imperfect, 
but I trust they may assist in perpetuating the 
memory of some of the incidents and conditions 
connected with the early settlement of this highly 



CAL ME MOIRE 

favored country. Before closing it is well to say 
that life among the pioneers was not all hardships 
and privations, but on the contrary they had their 
sports and social enjoyments, and some of them 
have told me that the people enjoyed themselves 
better than they do at the present time. To a 
great extent we take our happiness or misery with 
us wherever we go. Many of the pioneers were 
happier in their log cabins than some of the mil- 
lionaires of today. 

And now a kindly farewell to the noble men 
and women who first settled this highly favored 
spot. They builded better than they knew. They 
opened the way and laid the foundation for a higher 
civilization, for the railroads, telegraph, telephone, 
electric light and all modern improvements and 
conveniences. They rest from their earthly labors.. 
Blessed be the memory of their deeds, and thrice 
blessed their deeds of progressive goodness in the 
home of the blest through all the endless cycles of 
eternity. 




Formerly C. A. Barley & Son 



E.stablished 1874 



Morigage hoans 




R^eal Estate 



^ INSURANCE, ^ 



Le R.oy 



Illinois 



THE HISTORICAL ME MO IRE 



Pioneer Farming in Empire Township ;e^ 



"R y John PUcConn^il 



Q^ 



.. HE SYSTEM of farming employed here was some four inches deep, in order to keep it in the 

^J about the same as that prevailing throughout ground; about three inches would have been a 

the country. As fully sixty percent of the better depth. It required four or five yoke of 

earlv settlers took up this pursuit, we deem it cattle to pull it through the tough, thick blue stem 

paramount to all other occupations. Everything and sward; in many places a large tough root — 

then depended on the products of the soil. Doc- called >hoe string— which v\as very hard to cut, 

tors, school teachers, preachers, carpenters, black- also a red root that would throw the plow out, 

smiths and others lived in the country and made were found; two acres was a good day's work and 



a great deal of their living 
by cultivatingsomc ground 
Towns and villages t h.e n 
Mere hiirdly thought of. 
The pioneer was self-reliant 
and became an all around 
business man and made the 
best of the situation of 
whatever nature. 

The early settlers did not 
generally buy large tracts 
of land, they merely staked 
out their claims and got out 
a pre-emption with the in- 
tention of making their en- 
try when better able; they 
generally preferred a piece 
of timber to begin with; 
they usually sought the east 
side of the groves, in order 
to have b tter protection. 
There was nothing to stim- 
ulate the purchase of large 
tracts of land; there wa-- 
very little demand for sur- 
plus products, and fencirg 
was expensive, having to be 
very strong; the Virginia rail worm fence was 




■^-Jftw^-i. 





John McConniU 



$3 per acre was about the 
price; some times two crops 
were given for having 
the land broke. The best 
time to break this sward 
sod was May and June; if 
sooner it grew back, and if 
later, it did not rot so well. 
Corn was dropped alone 
along the cut edge of the 
furrow, often by boys and 
girls; a slower but surer 
way was to chop a hole in 
the sod, drop in the corn 
and tramp with foot; this 
crop was called sod corn 
and left to take care of it- 
self, no attempt was made 
to cultivate it. Sometimes 
pumpkins, melons, cucum- 
bers, etc., did well on sod; 
beans were sometimes 
planted. When this sod 
corn was cut and shocked 
and the later breaking sown 
to wheat wiih no further 
preparation than harrowing 
well with a wooden tootiied harrow, everything be- 



mostly used and cost more than the land enclosed, ing favorable, good crops were often raised. 

There were thou>ands of acresof cheap land to be Prairie sod was easily killed, and rotted very re.id- 

had, but breaking also involved heavy expense. A ily if broken at the proper time; weeds had n^ot 

legal fence, it was claimed, should be horse high, made their appearance here yet, except a very few; 

bull strong and hog tight. There was more con- a weed called tunibled-weed and may be a few 

tention about bad fences than all else; stock ran at others soon came on. 

large and some of it became very unrulv. Wheat was cut with a sickle or cradle; the sickl.e 

One of the great disadvantages that the pioneer was first used and the cradle came afterwards; 

had to contend with was a suitable plow ; the old one advantage the sickle had was tiiat it worked 



wooden mold board barshear was poorly adapted 
to the work required; it required an immense 
power to draw it and had to be built heavy and 
strong in order to stdnd the heavy strain; the 



well in down or lodged grain, it nieded no sharp- 
ening, and to use it was not very hard work, and 
with il neat work was done Ruth and Moabitcss, 
who gleaned in the fields of Boaz, would have made 



beam was some ten or eleven feet long and the cut poor wages in gleaning after our pioneer reapers; 
was from twenty to twenty-four inches wide, and the cradle was the speediest way, but it took more 



6 THE HISTORIC 

muscle; one acre per day was ^ood work with ihe 
sickle and three with the cradle. Threshing was 
done wiih the flail or tramping with horses; some- 
times the tenth bushel was given for flailing out. 
The granery was a rail pen chinked with straw 
and covered with prairie grass-; cleaning was done 
with sheet and wind by hand; some became very 
expert in this way. It required two hands and it 
was a very slow process at best. 

The wild or natural prairie grass was the only 
kind used for hay; the blue stem was considered 
the best and could be cut any time after September 
1 until killed with frost; it w.is cut with the scythe 
and winrovved with fork and hand rake; the fork 
was often a crorhed slick, the rake hand-made, all 
wood; large quantities were saved, which was 
clean, good and healthy for stock and kept well in 
the stack. Great care had to ^e taken to keep the 
prairie fires from getting the grass and also the 
hay; these fires were very fierce and destructive, 
burning large quantities of hay and grain and 
many hard fights had to be made to keep them un- 
der control, which was sometimes impossible if the 
wind should be strong. Slough grass made very 
good roofing for sheds, stables, etc.; if plenty was 
used and properly put on, it did well to shed snow 
and rain, and there was a warmth about it that 
made it comfortable for stock; this graf s was of 
great use to the early settler and it would have 
been hard to have done without it. 

The ground that was planted to corn after the 
sod had rotted was often furrowed out both ways 
and furrows about four feet apart made; this work 
was done also with a two-horse bar-shear wooden 
mold board, which had to be cleaned off every few 
rods and which made hard, slow work; the corn 
was dropped by hand ;ind covered with the hoc; 
no harrowing was done at this time, but after the 
corn had grown to a height of four or six inches 
an A shaped harrow was run astride each row, af- 
ter removing the middle front and rear teeth, a 
grape vine bow for a handle; the corn was plowed 
with one horse, first cultivating with a fluke, an 
iron tooth something like a goose foot; the frame a 
cro'ch of tree about three feet long, one 
tooth placed in front and one on each rear end and 
side; this was used in first cultivation, a small bar 
shear was also used; the after plowing was done 
with a large shovel forged out by blacksmiths and 
stocked by farmers. Three furrows were often 
run between each row and it was well tasselled 
out before the cultivation was finished and a very 
short singletree had to be used. The early settler 
seemed very indifferent as to gathering in the 
crop; the most enterprising would take a favorable 
time and jerk off a nice lot. haul and winrow at a 
convenient place, then call on all the lads and 
lassies around about; this meant a husking frolic, 



A L M E M O I R E 

a sort of a valentine arrangement. Each lad was 
expected to have an assistant and was given the 
right to chose his own helper; all things bt'ing 
ready, the work went cheerfully and briskly on; 
if a red ear showed up it had to be disposed of 
in rather a sentimental way; this sort of corn had 
a double value, the greatest was that for which it 
stood, which did not in any way impair its com- 
mercial value, and red stimulates courage. A well 
regulated husking in those times was considered a 
great luxury and never should have become ob- 
solete. 

Sometimes the ground was prepared for corn 
by ridging up or turning two furrows together, 
etc., until the patch was fini.-hed, these ridges 
were made t'le proper distance apart so each one 
represented a row when furrowed across; corn 
was dropped to the center of the ridge; this whs a 
speedy process and did well on new land. Pota- 
toes, beans, turnips and all kinds of vegetables 
grew to perfection, as did all species of vegetation 
take kindly to this bla:k soil; cultivation was easy 
as weeds were few; the great trouble was tools to 
work with, but as everything grew almost sponta- 
neously, the cultivation was an easy job and an 
abundance was produced and when properly 
stored away it was greatly relished during the 
winter; burying in the ground was the usual vvay 
of keeping them; many vegetables keep better 
and retain their flavor better thus than in any 
other way. Foodstuff was abundant and good, 
blackberries, gooseberries, strawberries, rasp- 
berries and dewberries grew wild, also graps, both 
fall and winter, were plentiful. Crabapples, 
])!ums, red and black haws, etc., which were good 
for jellies, butters, preserves, etc. Plums could 
be dried; crabapples burled Nuts also were abun- 
dant; walnuts, hickory, white oak, burr oak, chick- 
o-pin, etc., all of which were valu:ible to the pio- 
neers Insects were not seen here at that time, 
hence all of these grew to perfection; wild honey 
was plentiful, and locusts occasionally, wild game 
and fowls were abundant, such as deer, possum, 
squirrel, mink, muskrat, quail, grouse, geese, 
brant, bucks, crane, snipe, turkey, wild pigeon, 
etc. Fish of many kinds were to be had; these 
luxuries were accessible to the pioneer and added 
greatly to the comfort and pleasure of the settler. 
Tame fowls, chickens, guiena fowls, etc., were 
raised. 

I will give a brief description of a prairie team, 
without which it would have been next to impossi- 
ble to have settled and improved the country: A 
prairie team was made up of the bovine genius, 
both male and female, when of suitable age were 
pressed into the service; five yoke were about the 
required number to do satisfactory work; the grass 
roots were tough, firm and hard to cut. It re- 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 



quired an immanse power to keep steadily going' 
and to do satisfactory work. In making- up tlie 
team it was necessary to have two well broke 
yokes, one for the beam and one for the leaders; 
these need not necessarily be heavy, but should 
be brisk and handy; the middle might be raw or 
unbroken of either sex, good heavy cows did well. 
The beam cattle were depended on to keep in the 
furiow, hold the plow level and hold the team, 
should they attempt to stampede, which they 
sometimes did. The most difficult part of the 
work was to lay the lands off true and straight, if 
short crooks were made in laying off, the long 
strung out team soon worked them out; after the 
furrows were well f.pened up the team very readily 
followed them. The whip or tanning machine, as 
it was sometimes called, was inde^pensible, as 
yery much depended on its proper use; it required 
a platted buckskin lash some ten or twelve feet 
long and the stock about the same; an ironwood 
pole about one and a fourth inches in diameter at 
the butt was about the right size; the proper posi- 
tion for the driver was along the beam cattle and 
keeping the remainder of the team before him. 
However wild or awkward the team might be, it 
soon become gentle and tractable; the team was 
not fed grain after the grass had well started; 
they were allowed some extra time to gri'ze morn- 
ing and evening and were given a little extra time 
at noon, consequently there was no expense in 
feeding. The gearing was very inexpensive and 
durable— S2. 50 for yokes and $2 for chain It did 
not require longer than five minutes to yoke a 
gentle pair of oxen; each ox had to have a name, 
and like babies, they were hard to decide on; a 
near ox generally had one syllable and the off ox a 
two syllable name; for example, I will give the 
names that learned ourself to break prairie, viz: 
Leaders, Buck and Barry; next. Rock and Paddy; 
next, Ball and Dergan; next, Sam and Brandy; 
beam, Jack and Barne^'. 

Hunting and fishing were popular pastimes; it 
was pursued for pleasure and profit; the fellow 
who could put up the biggist hunting or fishing 
story was the hero of the times; everything went 
joyfullv along with the hunter until deer hcunds 
were brought in, which soon drove the largest and 
best game out of the country; this was one of the 
mistakes of the pioneer. The bird dogs of the 
present are doing the same with the quail and 
other valuable birds, which is a great damage to 
agriculture; farmers should join hands in elimin- 
ating the dog nuisance; it might be well to include 
pugs and poodles; their is a trite trneism that those 
who lie down with dogs get up with fleas. Exit 
dogs. 

Sheep were raised for wool and mutton; they 
were of the coarse wool breeds; the sheep were 



washed in the creeks before being shorn and after 
being shorn the wool was picked by hand; wool 
pickings were common; the women and girls did 
this kind of work, they also carded and spun it in- 
to yarn, and whilst at it, spun many yarns that 
contained no wool; the Woolen yarn was woven in- 
to jeans, flannel, blankets, etc. 

Flax was raised, pulled, broke, scouched, spun 
ard woven into linen for shirts, pants, sheets and 
other uses; the tow from the flax was used for 
making coarse goods, sacks, strings and quite a 
good deal for cleaning and swabbing guns. 

Wolves were a great annoyance by prowling 
around in the night, killing sheep, poultry, pigs, 
and lambs, and their dismal bowlings were not 
soothing to slumber on, and much lime was spent 
hunting, trapping and running them down with 
horses. Snakes were numerous and of many 
kinds: Bull, blueracers, garter, joint, glass, rat- 
tlers and hoop, but I think the latter was not seen. 
The rattlers were the most to be dreaded; they 
were short and thick. The largest about three 
to three and a-half feet long. Their habit was to 
coil up projecting the end of its tail up and out a 
little above the body, which it rattled when dis- 
turbed; they always made a rattle before they 
made a strike, which was a warning to stand back. 
I think they could not strike without bei.ig coiled 
and only a few inches above the ground. The 
remedy was plenty of whisky taken internally, 
and ambicr was applied sxternally; the bite sel- 
dom proved fatal if plenty of whisky was at hand 
and freely used. There was a peculiar case of a 
rattler's bite that went the rounds here in early 
times: Uncle Sam Wren Was bitten and he suf- 
fered no inconvenience from the effect, he lived 
right along, but the snake expired instanter. This 
was an extreme case in which preventative did the 
work. I will relate an incident wherein wu had 
business with the largest bull snake 1 ever saw. It 
was some seven feet long or •'thereabouts. In the 
summer of '55 together with two other teams I was 
breaking wild sward in Randolph, near Mud 
creek; we were on one mile rounds and well strung 
out; one of the drivers ahead came across his 
snakeship, being near the stable where we kept 
our herd horse, he procured a pitchfork and 
speared him through the neck, pinning him to the 
ground near the last furrow, leaving him there 
wrangling, writhing and blowing. As my team 
came along a large cow in the middle of the team 
saw, or smelled, his snakeship and began to bel- 
low and lunge; by doing so she excited and demor- 
alized the other cattle and it took lively work to 
avert a stampede. It was questionable whether 
she would break her neck or the yoke. Seveml 
rounds were made before she settled down to busi- 
ness. 



g THE HISTORIC 

Iron bo'ts, wire and nails wc-re hard to g-et and 
expensive, also leather and rope. The hickory 
withe was made to do service in their stead. This 
was made of a small hickory sprout, by trimming- 
-off all side limbs until made pliable to within a few 
inches of the butt and when cut olT at the ground 
was ready for use and when heated it could be 
tied in almost any shape and when properly fast- 
ened it made a good substantial tie and would 
stand a heavy strain, and would do good service in 
many ways. Hickory and other barks were used 
for chair bottoms and baskets. It served instead 
of rings for ox yokes, it coupled single-lrees and 
double trees satisf.nctorily, and filled a part very 
important in that time of scarcity of other ma- 
terial. Grape vines were used for clothes lines. 
In the Billy Clark smoke house in LeRoy there 
are meat hooks of hickory withes that have been 
there over forty years and in use yet. 

All kinds of stock were turned out on the 
range to ruminate at will and much time was 
spent in looking after them to keep them from 
straying off. Money was scarce and like the 
Dutchman's rye, very seldom. Exchange was the 
custom; wheat, etc., were exchanged for cows, 
cows for oxen, oxen for horses, horses for store 
goods, and the merchant drove them to market. 
Some of the pioneers became expert in this kind 
of traffic. Stock buyers came around and bought 
and bunched up the surplus stock and drove them 
to market. Everything was guessed off . Some- 
times hogs were weighed with steel-yard stock- 
scales— not in general use. The pioneer hog was 
a kind of evil genius, but an indispensible product, 
for all that. He was a long, lanky fellow with 
bi istles on his rump and shoulders which he raised 
when angry or excited, had a long snout and tail, 
with powerful j.iws and teeth which did good ser- 
vice. He had a way of flopping himself on his 
side and squeezing himself under or through a re- 
markably small space. When he could not get 
under he would attempt to get over. He was a 
rustler and a rooter and subsisted principally on 
nuts and roots and looked well to his own inter- 
ests. A grandmother and a couple of generations 
were capable of tearing up more dirt than an ordi- 



A L M E M O I R E 

nary prairie team in a day. When well matured 
and finished he made a pile of the finest bacon and 
lard. All in all he was a typical animal for the 
times. The pioneer could not have used a hog 
that could not whip or out run a wolf. After 
rounding out his time in the field he was capable 
of transporting himself to market over Walker's 
Line, landing at Pekin, Peoria or Chicago. The 
pioneer generally persuaded him to make the 
journey and went along for company. 

A large percent of the early settlers came here 
overland v.ith large stout wagons of broad tread, 
stiff tongues and well ironed and covered, which 
made agood shelter and they were capable of 
holding a good deal of freight. They were draw n 
bv two or four horses or oxen. These wagons 
af'.erwards did good service in hauling grain and 
goods to and from the few markets of those times. 
After making the long, hard journey it must have 
looked like a dismal prospect to carve out an ideal 
home when taking a view of the conditions of their 
surroundings. There were none or very few 
houses, no roads or bridges, few homes and less 
conveniences, but they had for encouragement an 
abundant supply of pure flowing, never failing 
water and an abundance of excellent timber of 
great variety which was exactly suited to their 
needs, but not enough to make it a burden to 
them. This was truly a wooden age and it sup- 
plied their almost every need, their buildings, and 
tools, even down to a broom, mush stick or shoe 
pegs were of wood — but there was not enough' to 
to be a burden. There was no logs or brush to 
burn, or clearing to be done; those grand groves 
were well flanked wiih thousands of acres of the 
finest prairie land that lay within the borders of 
this fair land, and covered with grass, the cheap- 
est and best stock food on the green earth. These 
grand prairies lay here ready for cultivation, the 
only tiling to be done was to tui-n over the sward 
and plant the seed, nature did the rest. There 
was much pleasure and profit connected with pio- 
neer life, but along different lines than now. Tak- 
ing all in all their condition was as favorable as 
that allotted to average humanity. 



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S3S3SS«3^S«SS^«3«S^3v^^S«SC3«3^^^3^S^5SS 



THE HISTORICAL ME MOIRE 



Pioneer Cooking in Empire Township i!J izJ 

"By Mrs. Ceo. HedricK, 

^ 4t ^ 



/ WAS NEVER more surprised then when I 

V first learned that mv name was down for a 

history of cooking' of the early settlers. 

Why, I had never written anything- in my life of a 

public nature, and what was there to be said about 

it anvWay ? I have always heard they lived very 

plainly, and to descr-be their manner of cooUing I 
should first have to describe the kind of houses 

they lived in, etc.. and to do 

that >vould be stepping ove 

on the Pio-eers' subjeci 

and ma) be I would not get 

back to my cooking t i 1 

every one would be hungry 

so 1 Was puzzled, but finallx 

concluded to write what J 

know and what knoweU-dgi 

I could obtain from my hu!» 

band, as he was here at it 

much earlier date than 1 

was, and as few, if any, ol 

the young- people of the 

present day have any idea o' 
the manner of cooking <r 
habits of the early settleis 
of this country, it would bi 
well to give a history (f 
somethings I have learnei 
about it for the benefit ( f 
the old and young- who max 
be interested or wish ti 
know. I will say in th 
fi'St place that people who 
came here in early limjs 
settled around the timber 




Mrj. Ceo. HedricK 



or near the e^i\se of the timber, as this was a much 
colder country then than now, tluy thought they 
would all freeze to death out on the bleak prairie 
with nothing to protect them from the wintery 
blasts; so they cut down trees nearly a foot in 
diameter and built houses of them, cutting them 
all the same length, and after making a notch in 
each end of the log- to hold them in place, they pro- 
ceeded to lay them together pen fashion. When 
it was as high as they wished, it was ready for the 
roof, which was a continuation of logs only farther 
apart, the end of the logs being cut shorter every 
time and the side logs drawing closer together 
made the slant in the roof. It was then covered 
with, boards four feet long, which were sawed the 
required length, of smooth oak timber split out 



with a froe (,-in iron blade for the purpose); these 
were laid on for the roof and held in place by 
weight poles, no nails beings used. Now the cabin, 
as it was called, was ready to be daubed and 
chinked. This was done by wedging in pieces of 
wood between the logs to fill up the largest places, 
then all the crevices were plastered with clay, 
mixed with straw. Altogether it was a very warm 
house. The floor was made 
of split logs smoothed off, 
with split side up. This 
was called a puncheon floor. 
The o.ily window was a 
square hole or aperture 
made by sawing out about 
a foot and a half of one log 
on the side of the house and 
instead of glass they used 
greased paper to keep out 
the cold and let in the light. 
This was pasted smoothly 
over the window and an- 
swered a very good pur- 
pose. The only door was 
made by splitting out slabs 
two or three inches thick 
and held in place by laying- 
two or three slabs cross- 
ways and pinning them 'o. 
gether with wooden pins. 
The door was then hung- 
with wooden hing-es; the 
only way of fastening the 
door was a lat:h made of a 
piece of wood about a foot 
long and two inc'ies wide. This was fastened to 
the door and m.ide to work up and down; when 
down it dropped into a notch fastened to the door 
caseing and this held the door fast. A hole was"' 
bored a few inches above the iatch and a leather 
string was tied around the latch by one end; the 
other end of the string was inserted through this 
hole and hung on the outside so that one from the 
outside could pull the string and raise the latch 
the same as we turn a knob now when we want to 
enter; and at night vvhen they wanted to lock the 
door the string was drawn inside; ne.xt morning it 
was inserted in the hole again so that all comers 
could go in. Now we are ready for the chimnev, 
which was made of sticks, clay and straw; straw 
mixed with clay to hold it together, then it was 



50 T II E II I S T O R I C A L M E M OI R E 

p'astcred on the ontsi<lo lo protect it from the and sometimes they baked between cabbag-e leives 

ucathcr and on the inside to keep the slide from in the same way; this bread though very plain 

btirninjj. Having first sawed out a piece five or was sweet and wliolesome. Sometimes meal was 

six feet square at one end of the cabin, the chim- made by parching- corn and beating it to the re- 

ney is j lined up lo this space which forms the fire quired fineness. Wheat was raised, but mills 

plac?. The hearth was sometimes made of clay were few and far between and poorly equipped to 

and sometimes made of il.it stones, if such a thing make flour, so wheat brtd was a luxury seldom 

cou'd be found, and here is where the cooking of indulged in. 

earlv times was done; for it must be remembered One way to cook meat was to hang it on a wire 

that cook stoves had never been heard of in those before a good fire and roast it that way, having 

clays. So a fire was built in the cabi i chimney by placed a pan underneath to catch the gravy that 

placing a back logon first, then a smaller one on would dropdown. It was one person's business 

top of that, then a couple of stones were fitted up to watch and turn the meat so it would rook on 

to these, and a fore-stick was laid on that, then all sides, and also to dip the gravy over it, which 

filled in with kindling and small wood. Nosv was already seasoned with salt and pepper. I 

comes lighting the fire. Matches then had never think a piece of venison cooked in this way would 

been heard of, so they had alwayson hand a bunch be greatly relished by people of today. Deer were 

of tow or a piece of punk which was very easy to plentiful and so was wild game of many kinds, 

liurn, and by holding this under a flint and stril - such as turkej's, cranes, geese, ducks, brant, 

ing the flint with a piece of steel the sparks would prairie chickens, rabbits, squirrels and all kinds 

fly out and set the low or punk afire, and that of birds, as we have now, but the people did not 

touched to the kindling would start the fire; and it have the ambition to hunt in Ihosedays as the peo- 

was no uncommon thing to borrow fire of their pic of the i)resent day would if they had a chance, 

neighbors, if they lived close enough, as every one They had their fat meat and corn bread and that 

tried to keep fire from one meal lo the next by was about all they cared for, but some dried their 

covering it up with ashes. I should have told you venison and other m2ats suitable to dry. Wild 

while building the chimney that a bar of iron was fruit was plentiful, such as blackberries, raspber- 

put across the throat of the chimney from side to ries, strawberries, plums and crahapples, but they 

side with hooks on and on which they hung their were used, if used at all, without much sugar, 

iron pots to cook their meats and vegetables, and as that also was a luxury few. if anj', could afford, 

sometimes they had what was called a crane. A though some, later on, tapped trees and made a 

piece of iron was hinged on one side of the fire little sugar, as we sometimes do now. 

place or jamb, with an iron attached with hooks Canning fruit then was unknown, and remained 

on; this could be swung back and forth over the so till about I860, so the only way to keep fruit for 

fire, and w^as a great convenience in those days, winter use was to dry it. They also dried pumpkin 

and a luxury all did not possess; and many a pot bv rutting it in strips and Hanging on a strong 

of dinner was upset and spilled for the want of cord above the fireplace; they also had hominy in 

them. They baked their corn bread in this wav: those davs by soaking corn in hot wateror Ive a few 

A bed of coals was shoveled out on the hearth and minutes to loopen the skin, then put it in a mortar 

an iron skillet with three legs was placed over v\ hich was either burnt out or hewn out of the end 

them, then greased with a piece of fat meat; in of a log; it was then beaten with a pestle to get the 

this was placed three good sized corn dodgers (as skins off, and every now and then taken out to fan 

they called them), two or three inches thick and the skins out. Then it was boiled as we boil 

covered the bottom of the skillet, this was made hominy now, or cooked in an oven which was like 

with the hands, of corn meal, salt i-nd water; a skillet, only deeper and had ears on the sides 

sometimes a little lard or cracklings were used; and was handled with hooks. The hominv was 

after the bread was in the skillet an iron lid, which was put in with plenty of water, covered with an 

had been heated over the fire, was put on, and red iron lid with fire on it and fire heaped around the 

hot coals heaped on that, and in about an hour it the oven; it would cook very nicely in three or four 

was done; then a pair of hooks, which were always hours and was much better hominy than any we 

handy, were used to lift the lid off. Another way can buy at the present day. 

to buke corn bread was to spread the dough on a Vegetables of all kinds grew to perfection and 

smooth board and set that up before a good fire, were often kept under the floor in winter near the 

and when done on one side, turn over and bake on hearth to keep them from freezing; but mo-tly 

the other; still another way was to take the ear of buried in the ground outside; cellers were not 

corn out of the husk and fill the husk with dough used yet, but as time wore on, some had caves as 

and bake it in the ashes, first covering the husk we often see now. I remember once in the win- 

with hot ashes then heaping red hot coals on that; ter of 1853 my sister and I were invited to a quilt. 



THE HISTOKICAL MEMOIR E 



11 



ing' bee and corn husking-. We were just from 
Kentucky and anxious to take in the sigfhts, so we 
went. There was snow on the g-round and the 
weather was very cold; the young folks from all 
around were there; the boys with their red-top 
boots on, and pants stuffed in them. The girls 
with their home-spun dresses, or if the had a light 
calico dress, they put that on; then a red bandanna 
handkerchief was pinned to the riglit side by one 
corner, the other just touching- the floor. Now 
they were ready for the dance, which was to be at 
night. One g-irl came five miles on horseback 
with a thin white dress on ard no riding- skirt, a 
small thin shawl and a white sun-bonnet, and the 
wind blowing a perfect gale of snow and frost and 
it was bitter cold . As she came over the hill the 
wind determined to tear what few clothes she had 
on to shreds How I did pilv that girl, and it was 
no wonder that in a short time she d ed of con- 
sumption. One of the young men a little prouder 
than the rest brought a trunk with his Sunday 
clothes in it so as to dress for the dance, and some 
mischievous fellows hid the trunk under the house 
and then there was a time, but after a while the 
trunk was found and everybody was ready for 
supper and the dance; the quilt being out and the 
corn being husked . They had a great deal cooked 
of evervthing that was good to eat at both meals. 
They had three large turkeys roasted with dress- 
ino-, vegetables of all kinds^ and pies and cakes, 
and I don't remember all they had but it was a 
bi"- lay out of good things, all cooked by a fire- 
place. In dancing the one that could make the 
most noise with his red-top boots was about ail 
right. One girl fell to the floor and her partner 
jumped back, threw up his hands and said: "Why, 
vou fell, didn't you ?" but did not oft'er to help her 
up. At a late hour my brother came for us with a 
wagon half filled with straw, and a comfort spread 
over that. We got in and another comfort was 
thrown over us and we started for home, a dis- 
tance of nearlv two miles, when a young man, who 
as the Widow Uedott says, was trying to be polite 
to me, rode up by the side of the wagon and asked 
if we did not want a pilot home. I said, no we 
could find the way; not wishing to trouble him, 
and not quite getting the idea that he wanted to 
go home with us to stay all night, so he gave his 
horse a cut and away he went. He had about 
eight miles to go and he got lost in the blinding 
storm that followed and almost froze to death, not 
arriving at home till daybreak. I Was sorry to 
have caused him so much discomfort, but was glad 
when we got home that he had not gone with us as 
my father had taken in three travelers for the 
night und our beds were full. Another time my 
sister, Mrs. Crumbaugh, and I were invited to a 
wool picking. The Methodist preacher was there 



and a number of the neighbors, and about the mid 
die of the afternoon the young lady of the house 
went out, caught a chicken and dressed and 
stewed it and heaped it up on a plate in the mid- 
of the table and that and a heaping plate of bis- 
cuits was all they had for supper, except some 
very weak coffee. I must say the coffee we got at 
hotels in this country then never deserved the 
name, as von would never know that it was coffee 
only by the burnt grains that floated on top. 
Stewed chicken nearly always had some of the 
the feathers left on as the tender hearted people 
couldn't bear to pull them all out at once. It was 
common at that time to drink out of yellow bowls 
instead of cups and saucers and glasses, and if 
they made jelly it was made with brown sugar and 
put in small stone jars. Pie plant was used later 
on for sauce and pies as people could afford sugar. 
And wild gooseberries grew here and made splen- 
did pies, and even sheeo-sorrel was greatly sought 
after for pies, and as the north half of LeRoy was 
vacant and only used for cow pasture for the town, 
in the spring time many women of the town could 
be seen gathering sorrel for pies, and dandy-lion 
for greens which seemed to grow plentifullv for 
their benefit. Another device for roasting meat 
and turkey and also for baking bread, was a tin 
oven two feet long and two feet high with one side 
out. The top flared up and the bottom flared 
down. Then there were grates in it to set the 
pans on to hold the meat and bread. This vi^as 
set up to a good fire and the reflection would bake 
or roast nicely. Still another way to bake was a 
brick oven built in the yard of clay and brick eight 
or ten feet long arched over the top, with flue at 
one end and door at the other. The bottom was 
plastered with clay and made very smooth and 
after it got dry was very hard and was ready for 
baking. This oven was generally used on Satur- 
day or when a number were to be cooked for. A 
fire was built in this oven of drv wood and when it 
had burned long enough to heat it thoroughlv, the 
fire was all taken out and bread, cake and perhaps 
a dozen pies, and anything they wanted to bake, 
were put in, the flue was covered and the iron door 
closed to keep the heat in, and everything would 
bake beautifully and could not be exceled by any 
modern device. In March, 1851, we came to Illi- 
nois by water; there were no railroads then. We 
landed at Pekin and came from there to Bloom- 
ington by stage. I do not think there was a fence 
between Pekin and Bloomington except a rail 
fence that surrounded the "Half-way House" 
where the stage stopped for dinner. The country- 
seemed so wild and hundreds of cranes hovered 
over the stage with their unearthly noi-;e making 
nie desolate and home-siclc, until we sat down to 
dinner. I made up my mind then that even Ken- 



12 THEHISTORI 

tuckv could not beat that dinner. Why, we had 
the best of fried ham, mashed potatoes, beans, 
butter, syrup, pie and cookies, and have never seen 
such a hirge heaping plate of splendid fried eggs 
as they had, and biscuit and good coffee completed 
the meal. It was all so nicelv grotten up and so 
well seasoned and prepared that 1 never forgot it, 
and so different from any other public house in 
this country then, and you would wonder where it 
came from, for the small house, and the small 
stable for the stage horses, were all there was in 
sight; not a neighbor, nor evei: a garden spot, 
nothing but the broad prairie as far as the eye 
could reach The Weedham brothers from Farmer 
Ciiy on their way home from California, dressed 
alike in brown jeans suits, vests and all, and Esack 
Greenman who had been to St. Louis for groceries, 
and my father, two brothers and myself and the 
driver'constituted the passengers for dinner. Af- 
ter the horses and all had eaten and rested we 
started for Bloomington, arriving at night and re- 
mained till morning when we secured a conveyance 
to LeRoy and found this a village without side- 
walks. The houses were small one-story wooden 
structures with end to the street and only two 
of these had ever been painted. The arrival of 
our party created quite a stir in the town, and 
many a hand shake of welcome did the Weedman 
brothers get from their acquaintances, but the 
only person any of our family had ever seen was 
old Uncle Daniel Crumbaugh, who had a wagon 
with apples selling on the street, and was an uncle 
to my sister's husband, to whose house we were 
going, and of course we were glad to meet anyone 
we had ever heard of before. 

Bui I keep getting over on the pioneer subject, 
so must get back to my eatables. It was a com- 
mon thing in early times to gather vyild grapes in 
the fall pick them off the stems, fill stone jars and 
cover with molosses; they would keep all winter 
and made a very rich pie. This was Orleans 
molasses. After this sorghum was grown by 
many and was a great improvement, and as time 
went on all things improved, until now cut glass 
is used instead of common yellow bowls, and havi- 
land china instead of the blue delft ware, and sil- 
ver instead of the horn handle knives of early 
times, and fatal diseases have taken the place of 



C A L M E M O I R E 

the old lime, but never to be forgotten ague, of 
which every living soul had a taste, except my 
brother, who declared he would never have such a 
low disease and he never did 

And now in I9i)4 we find LeKoya beautiful city 
of about two thousand inhabitants. As you will 
see it has not grown rapidly, springing up in a 
night as it were, as some mushroom cities have 
done, but its growth has been slow, sure and 
steady, growing faster each year and bids fair to 
improve more rapidly in the future. Substantial 
brick buildings have taken the place of small, 
wooden structures of the old time business part, 
and a new and beautiful addition has been added 
on the east in the last few years which is almost 
covered with new and handsome residences; and 
all over town elegant homes have been built, many 
bv retired farmers who have come here to rest 
from their labors and spend their last days in this 
attractive citv, which is blessed with four churches, 
two of them handsome edifices, a city hall, and a 
small prettv park with cement walks, adorns the 
center of town. Cement and brick sidewalks are 
everywhere in use, and we have two railroads, 
telephones, electric lights, the best fair in the 
county, with splendid grounds, and a canning fac- 
tory is now being built west of town which prom- 
ises to be quite a stimulus to business here. 
Many of our dwellings have all modern convenien- 
ces and improvements, with furnaces and hard 
and soft coal stoves to heat our houses, electi-ic 
lights and steel ranges and oil stoves to cook on; 
and instead of the plain food of olden times we 
have all kir.dsof canned vegatables and fruit ready 
for the tabic; meat, fish and soup of many kinds, 
and bread, pie and all kinds of cake and pickles, 
everything ready to eat, and with our cold storage 
and facilities for transportation, our tables are 
supplied with viands from every known clime. And 
the north half of the town plot where once the 
gentle bovine lazily cropped the waving grass and 
the dandylion and sheep Forrel flourished now 
stands the handsome school building and many at- 
tractive dwellings. This is an outline picture of 
LeRoy in ]9()4. I have not mentioned the two 
banks and the many and varied business houses, 
but at present all are flourishing and the psesent 
outlook for LeRoy is encouraging to all classes. 



■THE- 



LeR^oy Eagle 

^1.00 PEPs^ yEA'R 

/A ADVAJVCE 




Ijjaed Exiery Friday 



■THE f I JV EST<- 



BooK, /!f Job 

And Commercial 

r P^ I J^ T I J^ G 



13 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 

Pioneer Fencing in Empire Township a a 



"By T. L. "BucK. 

^ ^ ^ 



(\ 



HAVE BEEN chosen to write up the fenc- 
ing of Empire Township and vicinity from 
the eariv settlement. The pioneer fenciny;- 
was the old fashioned rail fence. Trees were cut 
down and the lou^s cut ten feet long and split in 
pieces about four inches square, owinif to the tim- 
ber. AjJfooil rail maker would cut and split two 
hundred rails in a day. Fourteen good rails and 

tight stakes and three 
ground chunks three feet 
long made one rod of fence. 
The line was staked out 
Jtnd the rails were hauled 
and fourteen dropped in ;■ 
pile about three feet apart, 
the length of the entire line 
making 1120 rails; two 
stakes and one ground 
chunk to the panel, which 
made what we used to call 
a good staked and double 
ridered fence. To build ihe 
ft nre, recollect, we ar> 
building 80 rods of old fash 
ioned four foot woim-raihd 
fence on a line east and 
West. We set a slake a 
each corner stone, then one- 
half way betwei-n .so the 
three are in exact range: 
now we get a stake ten lod^ 
west of the corner stake in j 
line with the other three, L. 
then go to the east corner 
and lay one end of the tirst 
rail on the center of the corner stone, the other we 
lay two feet to the north, then place one end of a 
rail on that, and place the other end two fi et south 
of the line, and you have what is caPed a four-foot 
worm-rail fence. To keep the fence in line we 
had what was called a worm stake. It was a stake 
about five feet long, ])ointed at one end; about one 
foot from the lower end an inch hole was made and 
one end of an inch pin two feet long was made 
fast; now bv keeping the worm stake in r.injje with 
the line slakes and by laving the ground rail at 
the point of the two-f(X)t pin reversed at each co'-- 
ner, the corners were kept true. Then a chunk 
was put under each corner and the fence built six 
raiU hiy^h. The stake h >les were diTg three feet 
from each corner and eight inches deep; then two 




T. L. "BucK 



Stakes were set slanting over each corner, then 
one end of the top rail was raised up and put be- 
tween the stakes and that held the fence. The 
other rail was put on on top and we then had what 
was equal to an eight rail staked and double rid- 
ered fence. Of course there was various ways of 
building rail fences too numerous to mention A 
little later on a fence called post and flat rail fence 
was used to some extent 
lor door yards, barn • lots 
md cross fences. The posts 
^vere split out abont two by 
-IX inches and six feet long, 
five mortices two by four 
inches in each post; the 
post set two feet in the 
ground and eight feet apart; 
the flat rails were nine feet 
in length and split thin, the 
ends flattened so that two 
ends would go in the same 
mortice six inches. Five 
rails made a fence four feet 
high and very substantial. 
In fencing the old Oak Grove 
cemelerv aw,,y back in the 
earlv forties, the west line 
was a post rail fence; the 
work was done bv old set- 
tlers of those early times, 
This fence was as solid as 
though it was in one piece. 
Alter it wan finished Ihe 
men were talking about how 
far a light sound could be 
heaid,soone man went to the further end of the 
fence and tapped lightly with his knife blade and 
by pulling the ear close to the post at the other 
end the sound could be plainly heard 'and I sup- 
pose that was the first telegraph dispatch sent 
over th? line in this country. I think if he had 
have put his lips close to the post and spoke low 
we would have had the telephone sixtv years ago. 
These two fences were p-ominent for a number of 
years. About 1850 the country began lo be devel- 
oped . It had been said that these prairies would 
nevei- be settled. Kor quite a while the land office 
D.iiiville was closeii. In the meantime the pre- 
emi>tion art was passed and became a law. About 
18i3 the building of the Illinois Central railroad' 
through McLean county to Bloom i^igton was a fact 



14 T II E H I S T O R 

:md Ihe state had donated to the Central road 
every other sect'u n of hind on each side of road a 
number of iniUs wide which was soon put ou the 
market and for several years lliere was a j^eneral 
rush for land regardless of prireor location. 'J'lun 
the question of fencing- came up. 'i'o fence with 
rails was impossible for there was not timber 
enough in the grovts to begin with and there were 
no railroads at that lime to ship in lumber and saw 
mills were scarce ; besides the best timber was 
needed for posts, and Ihe cry was what will we 
fence these lands with? About this lime the hog 
law came in force; that gave some relief, for a man 
was not required to build n tight fence after this 
lasv had passed. A man could fence his farm 
with two boards or poles and the law would pro- 
tect him, for every rough board or ]>i)le eight feet 
or three rods long were brought into use and 
nailed on posts with twenty penny nails. Then 
the experiment with the sod fence came. It was 
said a man could fence his farm of 160 acres and 
not use a stick of timber. The plow was ilrawn 
with four yoke of oxen; the line was staked out 
straight and the plow started turning over a sfid 
six inches deep and twelve inches wide. Now 
from the bottom of the furrow to the top of the 
sod is twelve inches high; then came back on the 
other side with the same kind of a furrow; then 
two rounds and the fence was two feet wide and 
two feet high. The machine had a wing, or fender, 
with small rollers that could be raised and shoved 
toward the fence and carried the sod gradually 
back and laid it even on top of the other sod and 
then the cut was changed to ten inches, then two 
twelve inch sods were laid on top and that held 
the sod together. That made a sod fence two feet 
wide at the bottom and twelve inches at the top 
and four feet high, but at that time stock of all 
kinds run at large on the prairie and it was said it 
would be fun for a hundred head of cattle to horn 
down a mile of this fence, so the sod fence failed. 
The willow fence was tried by some farmers, but 



I C A L M R M O I R E 

they regretted it ever afterwirds. A fence cilled 
the stob fence was used verv extensivelv for a 
while. It took the best of splitting timber which 
was cut four and a-half feet in length, split into 
pickets, sharpened at one end and drove in the 
ground eight inches on line and three inches apart. 
A plank or slat three inches wide was nailed on 
top. Thousands of acres of land was fenced with 
this stob fence and it answered a verv good pur- 
po>ie in its dav. VVe hail the grapevine picket 
fence. A man went to llie woods and got a load of 
wild grape vines, set his posts five rods apait, 
stretched two vines three feet from the ground 
slack, the pickets were driven in the ground six 
inches :ind the vine crossed between each picket. 
It was an imitation of some of our woven wire 
fences of toilay. This man fenced in his calf 
pasture anrl that was all there was of it. But when 
the osage hedge was introduced that settled the 
question of fencing. In the meantime the rail- 
roads had got to Bloomington, lumber was shipped 
there and distributed all through this section of 
countrv. Later on we got a railroad through Le- 
Roy, so that we have fencing lumber right at 
home. It is well known that barbed wire has 
formed a prominent part in fencing and many 
other kinds of wire fence we are familiar with, so 
I will leave it to some other historian to write up 
the wire fences later on. 

In 1850 good land coul<l be bought for SI. 25 per 
acre; now in the vear 1904 if a man will be right 
quick about it he can buy some o^ the same land 
nicely improved at $150 per acre. 

In closing this subject my mind goes back in 
tender memorv to those primitive davs of the old 
log cabin with its clap board door and puncheon 
floor and to the old fashioned r;iil fence, and I 
sometimes wonder why some of our home poets 
do not write a poem on the old log cabin, and the 
old pioneer rail fence, the old fashioned fence, the 
staked and dduble ridered four foot rail fence of 
Buckles Grove. 



^i^!^i^^^9?>^^t,i^^^^i^f^^^i^^ ^ :fej^»ife»»»»»»»i»» » ^f^Ti'^ 



4^ 
49 
4^ 



THE F/RST NATIONAL BANK 

OF LEROY SOLICITS YOUR DEPOSITS. HOW CAN WE GET THEM? 











Shall we beg 



Or must we 
r>rav for it? 



Or go alter it with 



Will yim 
Phone ub? 



Or drop us a 
line? 



Will you cal! 
on us? 



Or shall we 
call on you? 






I^^^^^¥^^^^«¥^«^#$^^$¥^^^^^^^^^$^^$¥¥^$^¥^ 



15 



THE HISTORICAL M E M O I R E 

Pioneer Transportation in Empire Township 



•By Mrs. J. V. Smith 



Oka 



KANSrORTATlON, the .ndvance .ngrent of civ- Grove wns as determined to keep it; the tug- was a 

iiiz.ition, the power that enables the lonely hard one, but LiRoy won of course and in TsoS be- 

fiontiersman and the early dwellers in the came a station on the mail route established be- 

rude hamkt lo gather frim the big- world outside tween Danville and I'eoria. A oostoftice was 

that which will broaden and brij^htin their lives, opened in the Way-side inn kept by Mr. Hiram 

and by the same mtdiiim, those from older and Buck, on the corner now occupied by the First 

an<i thicker settled districts t)ring into the pioneer National bank of LeR«y. Mr. Buck became our 

village newer ideas of business, laws and all the first postmaster as well as first hotel keeper, his 

little amenities of Ife which follow the mingling daughter, Amantia — now Mrs. J. H. L. Crum- 

of man with his fellows. The history of transpor- b:'Ujfh — was sworn in as deputv postmistress and 

tation is told i.i the same lines in common with all took personal charge of theoffice for several vears. 



localities at the time of settle- 
ment; the evolution of the cov- 
ered wagon of the old-lime pio- 
neer to the inter-urban trolly car 
of the 20th cenlurv, is as inter- 
esting as any tale of fiction. 

The vanguard in the march of 
all western civilization has been 
the white-winged "prairie schoon- 
er," containing all the wordly 
possessions and loved ones of 
some adventurous soul who 
thinks to find in tlie untrodden 
prairies of the glowing west the 
Eldorado of his dreams. Tired 
and footsore at the close of some 
long day 's wanderings, he comes 
to a beautiful spot for a night's 
camp, such a o"o as LeRoy must 
have been in tho^e early years of 
the 19ih century —slightly ele- 
vated above the adjoining plains, 
sheltered by forests abounding in wild game, 
w.itered hv limpid streams, surrounded on all 
sides by immense prairies whose waving grasses 
and many luied flowers grew out of the richest 




Mrs. J. V. .ymilh 



She says the w^orkof the posi- 
tion consisted in being able to 
extricate in seven minutes — the 
time allowed, from a bagintentl- 
ed for a stretch from Urbana to 
Pekin, all mail for LcRoy, 
Cheiiey's Grove and the settle- 
ments north, Marion, now r>e- 
'Vitt, and all settlements south, 
as these places sent a man once 
a week for mail. 

The first service was by post- 
rider making his trips once, 
twice or three times a week, as 
the conditions of the roads would 
allow. In the spring when the 
bottom of the road was too far 
down, they were glad to get 
mail once in a while. One of the 
first mail carriers was .Mr. Wm. 
Pierce, one of the early settlers. 
In time the needs of the growing 
villiige (I'emanded accommodati(»n for an occasional 
traveler with his little belongings and our post-rider 
became a stage d river, who announcetl the com- 
ing of the U. S. mail with the sonorous tones of a 
brass horn, and it is toid that he became so pro- 



soil the sun ever shone upon. What a paradise for 

the home-seeker! Our mover pitches his tent and ficient by practice that he could almost play a tune, 

this becomes the nucleus of our village. Others its notes were eagerly welcomed for the most e,x- 

come along the trail and for thesame good reasons citing event of the week «as the arrival of the mail 

set u p their household gods, until our new settle- hack as it came rumbling in from space, some- 

ment contains about twenty-five families. To be times covered will) mvid, often ice-clad like a ship 

happy and contented in the new life means for in the Arctics. The driver was a hero who 

com muctication with the dear ones at the old home laughed at sloughs, washed-out bridges and bot- 

must be had. As earlv as IS.^1 mail was brought tomless roads. The mail-pouch he brought held a 

to Cheney's Grove once a week l)y a route running modest bunch of letters which the storekeeper 

from Danville through Bloomington to PeKin. It could pigeon-lude without interrupting his trade, 

was a hard trip to Filoomington or Cheney's Grove 'J"o hear from Ohio or back east vvas an event, and 

for letters, and our settlers became determined to the distinguished individual who heard, passed t)is 

switch that mail-bag over to LcRoy. Cheney's \\ al'ered kttcr around and told all the news it con- 



16 



ta ned. No deluge of maeazlnes or periodicals burst from 
the olrttime maii bag. Ev< r> man look his count) paptr, 
whelh.rhfc paid its subfcrlption or not, bu only a tew 
could afford the frivolous indulfenee of the novel stories 
In the New York Ledger or Saturdaj Evening- Host. 

This driver often brouyht mvsterlous passengers, who 

bri.fl^- alifhted at the travern, then proceed towaid the 

end of the world Occasionally a man of note dropped 

down from the bi^ world outside. Abraham Lincoln once 

waited at our m<.de8t hostelry for a change of horses. 

Judt-e David D,.vis has bi en a passenger ot the old coach 

when going over tht- country on legal business. The old 

stage often brought to onr village the Hen. John Went- 

worth, for LeRoy was then in the s me di.-trict politically 

as Chicago, representing this district, and on his way to 

the capitol. stopping at L.Roy. It is told that be was 

often the guest of Mr. Rr-uben Clearwaters, and that he 

was so tall— you know he was called Long John Went- 

worth-ihat Uncle Heuben had to ni;,ke and k.ep for his 

use a bedstead of extra length, which, when not in use, 

was an object of curiosity to the passer b^ . on the outside 

ol the mod€st log house. From 18J2 to 18-16 John K. Mc- 

Clun of Hlocmington obtain.d the mail contracts of all 

routes cming into or through Boomingion. They were 

all carried on horseback exceut our line running from 

Peoria to Danville, over which mail and passengers were 

earned with considerable regularity, in , wo horse coaches 

three times a week. Carrying t, e mail in those dajs was 

attended with no little oifficuU ; the streams were mostly 

unbridged. and vehicle- were often swamped in them and 

had to be pulled out by oxen. When the roads «ere at 

their worst, drivers would put the mail in a queensware 

crate on the front wheels ol a wagon, hitch three horses 

to .t and pull through that way. Stories have been told 

of drivers lost on these big prairies on dark and stormy 

nights, of swollen streams, of frozen hands and feet and 

Of a passenger once lost in a driving snow ^torm, appear, ng 

n. Bloomington two dajs later. A Bloomington man nam.d 

Burhance followed Judge McC un, and put on the route 

the first genuine stage coa. h with boot and other Co., v. n- 

lences for carry ing passenger.-. About 1850 Krink & V\ al- 

ker of Columbus. Ohio, secured contracts for a line of 

l?,f .VT ^"""'*'""°' '°'^- »° Peoria and beyond, they 
with the Western Stage Co., operated all the ,tage lines 
.n this part of the state untU the coming of the I linoi« 
Central into Champaign. This old first mail route was not 
always under control of one fi,m or person, it was divided 
into sections, and these let out on contract by the govern- 
ment to the lowest responsible bidder for a term of four 
years One section was from U. bana to Bloon.ington. 
Contractors paid their drivers five cents a mile for carry- 
ing passengers, for carrying the mail $10 a mo.ith when 
driving two horses, $12 when using four. Thousands of 
dollars were, ntrusted to their carrying, and bundles, as 
well, all sizes and values, from a diamord ring to a sew- 
ingmachine, but neither history nor rumor doth record 
that ever one of them betrayed the trusts committed to 
their care. In 1854 B. R. M. Sih. who k. pt hotel on the 
corner where now stands Keenan's bank, became the con- 
tractor and ran the line until 1858, when the carrying of 

i^^ :>!"u'^f ^/'""° B'^o-'-Kton and Urbana passed 
into the hands of Mr. Yoniz Boonett and J. V. Smith of 

K ?„^° '^^ ^'- ^"°"^'' ^"'^ ^'^ *nt-^^-' to ^mith 
who held the contract for eight years, but in '63 sub-let 
the route from LeRoy to Bloomington to Mr. L. A Rike 
who was succeeded in 1866 by Robert Semple & Son, who 
carried the mail till railroad days. The eastern ena of 
the line to Urbana was secured by a stranger, a star route 
nvan Who underbid all home applicants. With the com.ng 
of the iron horse in 1870 we bade a final adieu to the old 



THE HISTORICAL MR MOIRE 



stage line and its memories. 

Can we, who ante-date these railroad days. 

Ever foreet the old stage coach wit hits wearing ways 

The lurch and the lift of its cumbersome gear. 

Gave to our hearts both doubt ;ind fear, 

Dout)t, that we should ever reach the town, 

Fear, with each lurch, that the next, we'd go down. 



I am told that this old state or national road over 
which our mail was carried by horse for thirty-t wo years 
has been ch^nyed but in few places in all the*e years' 
That the Big F,.ur railroad in nearly all its length be- 
tween Indianapolis and Peoria runs almost parallel to it. 
Prior to the establishment of the mail route through 
LeRo3. it ran south of the village, coming from Mt 
Pleasant, now Farmer City, crossed Salt ere. k at Caion's 
bridge, past the od Clearwater's farm, west to the Ltck- 
erson land, following the timber a short diMaiice;the ce 
aero.-sthe open country, crossing the Kirkapoo at what 
was then called Delta, a little north of Down*, then on to 
Boomington. The tir^t plan on record of a railro; d lur- 
ningeast and west through this county wa pr,.po«d as 
e;,rly as 1836, and twelve miles of it was graded, ea.M of ■ 
Pekin. The sch. me prcv.d a failure at this time »wi„a to ■ 
a financial crash which prostrated all such ent. rprises 1 
The pr.j-ct was revived in 1854 and again in 06, and in 
this year meetings were helu along the eastern , nd of the 
line, it was then called the Danville & Bl.omngton rail- ' 
road. Acharler was obtain.d in 1857 and me, til, efi.Kain ' 
called along the line from Danville to Pekm; .he panicky 
da, s of -57 again laid the scheme on the shelf and nothinR ' 
more seems to have been done in the matter until after ' 
the war. In 1866 all business began to take on nt>w a.tiv- ' 
ity, the increase in population with its attendant need of 
buiding material and the nece^^aries of life and the hard- 
ships endured in marketing stock and grain called impel- 
atively f..r better facilities of transportation. Meetings ' 
m favor of the old proj cted road were again called into 
action in all the larger towns along the line, the eastern 
e id people met at Urbana in July, 1866; nothin,- was ac- 
c.mphshed, alter long consultat on it was jidj .urned ti. 
meet in LeR.iy, Angu.st >th, delegates from the other 
meetings being present. Another was held on Augu;.t 27 
some opposili.,n was manifested, but the fr'ends of tb.- 
road eff, cted an ..rganization, with C. R. Grigg» of Ui- 
bana as president, W. T. McCord of F. rmer City vice 
president and Dr. Hmry Conkling of Bl.,ominf; ton secre- 
tary. The people of Empire deem, d the buildin.-'of thi~ ' 
road of v.tal importance 10 them and went to'work in 
earnest. By an affirmative vote a pledge was made ft,r 1 
raising $50i)( in twenty years 10 per c. nt bonds f„r th- I 
D,U., B.&R K.R. Soon after this it w.s discvere.l i 
that the company had not been organized in strict con- '' 
form.ty to law. Bloomington had the buiidino- of another 
road on her hands and possibly did not act as quickly as 
she would otherwise have done, and little technicaliiie* or 
th. law too tedious to mention here, prevented our en - 
bryo road from being given legal life. In 1867 an act w.. 
passed by the legislature and charter gra..ted givin.r \., 

Son ^"""!^'P ^"'l!'"-''^ '" ^"''^'^^'be not more Th.,. 
*2o0.000 in aid of such a road. In June of '67 vote .f 
township was again taken, resulting a second time affirn - 
atively by 202 to 6, The road was com.nenced, bonds i- 
sued and went with hundreds of like natur,- into the ere c 
poo s of construction companies, who mortgaged them fi r 
half their face, then let them slide. 

In October '69 our little road was consolidated win. 
anJ became the Indianapolis. B.oomington & Western an I 
work came to a standstill, more bonds must b. issued, tl e 
township authorities .ubmitled the question of issuin,. 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 



17 



twenty five thousand additional dollars which resulted in 
the affirmative. From this time fewer obstacles arose, 
although at one time the legality of this second 'ssue of 
bonds was questioned, but the U. S. court settled the mat- 
ter in favor of the issue. To cut short a long story, the 
loyalty, staunchness and enterprise of its adberants re- 
sulted in the running of the first train over the road May 
1st, 1870. A prouder, happier set of citizens could not be 
found than IveRoy possessed at this time, and she soon 
took upon herself the airs and organization of a city. But 
the restless western spirit of her wide-awake sons was not 
satisfied with one railroad. They seemed to feel that af- 
ter paying $75,000 toward its building, they were discrim- 
inated against in the matter of freights, taking the issue 
in their own hands, and after much canvassing, it was de- 
cided to ask the people along thr proposed route for help 
to grade, bridge and tie a narrow guage road from LeRoy 
to Rantoul, and to bond it for -$1,000 a mile for the iron. 
The building of the section of the road from LeRoy- to 
Fisher, is, I believe, wholly a LeRoy enterprise, and no 



history of our little city is complete without its mention. 
In March 1876 a company was formed to build a narrow 
g-auge road to Fisher and meet there the road already fin- 
ished to Rantoul. James Bishop was elected president, 
C. A. Barley, secretary, and Joseph Keenan, treasurer. 
Fifteen thousand dollars were subscribeo to the stock, 
the death of Mr. Bishop put a stop to the matter for 
awhile. Early in 1878 B. J. Gifford of Rantoul became its 
president, the stock vfas increased to $30,000, the right-of- 
way was mostly donated, and in ten months' time the road 
was built and in running order. Two-thirds of this stock 
was subscribed in grand old Empire, creating no debt. 

Thus have we passed through all the evolutionsof trans- 
portation save the last, but the breezes from the east bear 
to our eager ears the buzz of the trolly car as it whirls in- 
to Champaign, and knowing by the experience of the past 
that no enterprise is too gigantic for the brain or purse of 
jlcLean county's sons, we are sure that the years will be 
few and perhaps only months when we shall see Bloom- 
ington from the windows of an interurban electric car. 



fYi 

UK/ M BALL H/ANOSl 

u 



s 



n 
s 

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n 

5 



WHY NOT CALL AND SEE THE 



RIANOS AND ORGANS? ^ 

u 

8 
S 
U 
U 



That won the 1st 
pr'ze at World's 
Columbian and 
Omaha exposi- 
tions, and are 
mide in the larg- 
est factories in 
the world and are 
used and praised 
by the World's 
best musical au- 
thorities. 



W^ 



MUSIO 




Such as Adelina 
Patti: "The Kim- 
ball has a wonder- 
fully sweet and 
sym pathetic 
tone." 

Lillian Nordica: 
"The more I use 
my Kimball the 
better I like it." 

%^ 

CALL OR 
WRITE US 



Come and aslc to hear thi.- KIMBALL PIANO player, "any child can operate it.'' We also 

HAVE THK 

HALLET A DAVIS AND DUNBAR PIANOS 

OARLOCK'S MUSIO HOUSE g 



513 N MAIN STEET, BLOOMINGTON. ILL 

«3 i3^S«3S3CSCSS3CSS3i^C3^S^SCS^S J 



5 

8 
8 
8 



f^SCS 



18 THEHISTORICALMEMOIRE 

Good Old Times in Empire Township /a a 

•By C. to. HedricK 
^ ^ ^ 



A DESIRE to present to you a much neglected sub- 
(^ j -ct. You have without doubt heard a great deal 
-,_ ) said about the hardships and privations of the 
early settlers In this country. What you have 
heard may be true in part, but the picture has been great- 
ly overdrawn. Had you been present in these early days 
you would never have heard those settlers complaining or 
wishing themselves back to their native state where pos- 
sible wealth and relinement abounded. No; this free, inde- 
pendent, easy life, just suited 
thein. They were all poor and 
came here to get away from 
the restraints and demanr's 
of society in their mother 
country. They were happy 
and comfortable here, and 
had to make but a small ef- 
fort comparatively, to secure 
a good living for themselves 
and their families. Their 
hoes were fattened on acorns 
and other nuts with which 
the woodlands abounded plen- 
tifully. Their cattlt- were 
raised on the prairie grass 
that waxed in luxiiriame for 
miles around. Game w; s 
plentiful, and they had noth- 
ing to stimulate them to 
raise more than they could 
use themselves, as corn was 
very low in price and no de- 
mand for it only as a new- 
comer might want a small 
amount. Almost every fam- 
ily raised a patch of fl.ix, and 
the women would spin and 
weave it into cloths, sheets, 
shirts, pants or anything 
they wanted to mike of it. 
They also spun the thread 
to mike these goods with. 
They also had sheep, anu 

would spin and weave the woe 1 into jeans for the men to 
wear and into linsey for the «omen's dresses. They like- 
wise wove their own shawls and knit their own hose. They 
did not have to ruffle their dressep, but everything was 
made plain and comfortable. No worrying about styles or 
sitting up late to finish the elegant dress for some bril- 
liant entertaiiimeTt: no worrying about what to wear, or 
how to wear it: everything was plain, common, comfort- 
able and healthy. The people were h,ippy, and many of 
them were devout christians, and trusted the I.,ord with 
the faith of a child. More than one whom I have person- 
ally known, made it a rule of their lives before they lay 
down at night, to think over all they had done and said 
through the day; and ask God's forgivntss for any sins 
they had committed, and His blessing on all their good 
deeds. Religious meetings were held around at the houses 
of settlers, and in summer time in the groves. Camp 
meetings were 1-eld every fall in the different groves near 
a good spring of water and other uatural advantages. 



They would build their tents and hold meetings for weeks; 
some of these tents were made of wood, others of canvas. 
These meetings were greatly enjoyed by all. Of course all 
were not religious; fome indulged in such worldly sports 
as horseracing, dancing, jumping, running, boxing, wrest- 
ling, and sometimes a little whisky was on hand and a 
general good time was had all around. But the people 
as a rule were honest, good-hearted, whole-souled and 
clever; never too busy to help one another, especially 

ready and willing to assist a 
newcomer. They often went 
twenty or thirty miles to help 
others build their houses, and 
the women would make qiiilt- 
ings ana wool pickings, and 
visit a great deal, hitching 
up the twohorse wagon and 
taking the whole family. 
Truly they were a happy peo- 
ple. They lived in the gran- 
est country the world has 
ever seen. There was plenty 
of wild fruit of every kind; 
blackberries were large. Hue 
and plenlifnl. strawberries 
also abounded, raspberries 
were luscious and grew in 
great quantitii s, and plums 
were in abundance. Nu wild 
animals were there to make 
the settlers afraid as there 
were in many new countries; 
and the Indians were friendly 
and never were known to mo- 
lest the whites; not a drop of 
white blood has evt-r been 
shed by an Indian in McLean 
county. 

The timber and prairie 
seemed to be located j ist tp 
suit man's taste. Wuh the 
finest of timber in the groves, 
and the grandest, most fer- 
tile, most productive and beautiful c uniry it ever fell to 
the lot of man to possess, why should not they ha"e been 
happy ? T.. my mind it far surpassed the land of (lanann 
when God took Abraham and showed it to him, or when 
He told Isreal to go up and possess it. For they h^d an 
enemy to subdue, and it took many hundred years to dis| os- 
sess that enemy; and if ever a land literally fl iwed with 
milk and honey this did. There were plenty of C')W8, and 
many of the hollow trees were fi led with the best of 
honey made from the flowers that covered the vast prai- 
ries. And what a sight to gladden the eye of the beholder 
were the many hued and beautiful fli)wers that grew 
everywhere. 

Compare this country if you please, with Kentucky, 
Indiana a'd Ohio, and many other states: see whit they 
had to contend with. Why. thev could not have even a 
garden spot without cutting down the heavy timber that 
covered those ;iew countries; and too much rock has al- 
ways been a great nuisance and hindrance to mtn set 




C. ey. HedricK 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 



19 



tling in a new country. Then too, the Indians have al- 
wajs interfered with the early comers in almost every 
state save this. Just think of the advantages of this over 
every other country. Well did ex Governor Joe Fifer say 
in the halls of the legislature; That McLean county was 
the breast-pin of Illinois; and Gardner Randolph, who first 
settled in Randolph's grove, said after traveling over 
many countries in quest of a home: " This is nood enough 
for anybody." This certainly is God's favored land, and 
at any time has there been anyone to molest or make you 
afraid, but all were free to roam and go as they choose, 
and today I <{now of no other country that has so many 
advantages and so few disadvantages as this. As regards 
the health of the people It is as good as can be found any- 
where. Their virtue and integrity as a people is unques- 
tioned The climate, take it the year round, is first class. 
The products of the soil in quality, in quantity, and vari- 
ety cannot be excelled. A"d today the farm lands of Mc- 
Lean county are yielding their owners a clear income of 
from fou' and ahalf to eight dollars per acre, and have 
been doing so for years, and bid fair to do the same thing 
for all time to come. 



We also have a number of educated, -talented and dis- 
tinguished persons born in Empire Township. Our present 
representative to the legislature, in which we all take 
pride, is, and has long been a resident of our beautiful city 
of LeRoy, and John A. Sterling, the present member of 
congress from this district, of whom we also are justly 
proud, was born, raised and educated in Empire Township. 
I feel proud and glad that I can claim this for my birth- 
place, and that I have been identified for sixty-seven 
years with its growth and development all along these 
lines that go to make this a great and glorious country. 

May I say in conclusion that the reason I have been in- 
duced to write this paper, is the fact that at every Old 
Settler's meeting I have attended, the speakers are always 
harping on the hardships and privations of the early set- 
tlors, when they should at least have been willing to re- 
count to us and to our children something of the good 
things and the good times enjoyed by those who first made 
their homes in this goodly land. 



A. H. Morri4: 



Established 

1880 



I.e'Roy, III. 




{"^mi^i^i^i^i^i 



OUR MOTTO 



J I "The recollfciion of Quality remains Ion? 
! 5 afrer tlie Pr'ce is forerorten, 



20 THEHISTORICALMEMOIRE 

Pioneer Schools of Empire Towmship iH 

"By Mrj. A dam Murray 

<^9 ^^ ?^ 




HKN the morning stars satigf together, and prim- 
eval light was day and primeval darlcness nigl t; 
when Adam and Eve, our noted ancestors, tast- 
ed of the tree of knowledge— education began. As inves- 
tigators at one fell swoop they added immensely to the 
sum of human icnowledge. 

Philosophy was born, scientific research began, and 
this early searcher after wisdom and wisdom's ways, foot- 
sore and weary, a wanderer of the earth earthy, evolved 
the great truth of the "why and wherefore" that is yet 
the unsolvable problem. 

Knowledge is power and the adding thereto the work 
of all mankind. Every new thought, 
every generous truth, every kindly ict 
is the off spring of some great mind 
stored with years and years of earnest 
thought and study. 

On July 5th, 1778, the first note of 
education was sounded in the north- 
western territory by the Rev. Manas- 
seh Cutler of Massachusetts. His 
portrait should have a place of honor 
in every school in this territory. The 
point to be considered No. 2. In arti- 
cles of compact ; provisions for schools, 
giving one section for a seminary, and 
and every section No. Hi, in each 
township. That is one thirty-si.xth of 
all the lands for public schools. 

'• Be it forever remembered that 
this compact declared that religion, 
morality and isnowledge, being neces- 
sary to good government and the hap- 
piness of mankind, schools and the 
means of education should always be 
encouraged." 

McLean county obtained thirty- 
seven thousand acres from the United 
States in virtue of the Swamp Land Act. These lands 
were sold for $130,000 and the proceeds devoted to educa- 
tional purposes; $70,000 to the State Normal, and the rest 
distributed for the benefit of the common schools. The 
sale of the swamp lands was effected in 1851 throu^jh Judge 
Merriman A great mistake, as time has proven, but the 
great need of money for public uses, was the cause for the 
short sightfdness at the time. 

Popu ation of LeKoy in 1850 was 210. The town of Le- 
Roy was incorporated in 1855. 

Empire in the southern tier of townships is eight miles 
long by six east and west, and is described as town 22 
north, range 1 east, and the first twelve sections of town 
21 range 4 east of the third principal meridian. 

Public education as we know it, is the product of the 
present century. Previous to 1851 only the rudiments of 
the common schools, of systems of organization, of sup- 
port by state, of co-education, in fact of education for 
girls at all, were found. The common schools began in 
pauper or charity schools, the better classes educated 
their children at home or in private schools. The ming- 
ling of the classes with the masses was not yet to be en 
dured Parochial schools continued long after the union 
of church and state politically had ceased. 




Mrs. Adam Murray 



Now In order to get at this subject properly I will have 
to go back to the township organization and describe some 
of the earlier schools of this community. The Clearwater 
school house was erected in 1832 by our sturdy pioneers, 
was built of logs, chinked and daubed, to keep out the 
cold, with material mud and sand, hotli plentiful and eco- 
nomical, ecoromy being a great consideration in these 
days. Windows were made by cutting out a log and past- 
ing in greased oaper for light. A large fireplace was built 
at one end whose capacious throat took most of the heat 
out of doors, around which the youngsters of that day sat 
on logs piled to replenish the fire, and acted very much as 
obstreperous youths do today. Bench- 
es to sit upon were made of planks 
hewn as smoot as possible with the only 
available too's, and adz, ax, Jack- 
plane, drawing-kife, and possibly a 
pocket knife; made of uniform height, 
six inches wide, without any backs, 
with peg legs; the smaller children's 
feet not touching the floor. A taller 
and little wider one was made for 
those who wrote. Copies were writ- 
ten by the teacher, who both made 
and repaired their pens, which were 
made of goose quills. 

The requirements of a teacher be- 
ing a knowledge of reading, writing, 
arithmetic, and a bundle of sticks. 
Corporal punishment was in full blast, 
and if the child needed it, and the 
teacher had failed to provide himself 
the culprit was sent after switcfes, 
which he duly riniied with his knife 
if he had one, otherwise selected 
those that would break ea.sy, proceed- 
ing leisurly along back, casting his 
eyes around for an extra something 
to put under his coat, invariably saying as he took his 
seat, that "it didn't hurt much." 

The first teacher was William Johnson who was lame 
but I am told what he lacked in the activity rf his legs 
he made up with his arms and "walloped" the boys in first 
class style. The worst punishment was with a ru e, a 
stick made of hickory about a foot long, and first used tp 
line pai)er. The child was told to come forward, hold out 
the hand, the teacher taking hold of the fingers, bending 
them back and slapping the palm: "Vengeance is mine 
saith the Lord," but vengeance was in the child's heart 
by the time he w is through, and in time the rule disap- 
peared or something else was done to get even with the 
teacher. 

The teacher boarded around a week for a scholar, each 
parent furnishing a quarter of a cord of wood to warm 
the school house. Teacher and pupils cutting it at noon 
and recess. It was allways green ana full of sap, sled 
length, and did not burn very well; covered at night to fire 
in the morning; real cold nights it generally went out, 
and someone had to go to some house and borrow fire to 
start with. 

Other teachers were Mr. and Mrs. Amasa Washburn, 
Mr. Gaunt, Mr. Thcmjscn acd James Vinctvente 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 



21 



Gradually schools were started in different parts of the 
country a;id the people became more interested in the sub- 
ject of education, schools were supported by contribution, 
that is some one would go around with a paper and have 
the parents sign the number they would send; thus the 
tuition was paid by the pupils. The schools were only 
kept open a few months in the year. 

The first school taupht in LeRoy was taught in a room 
standing where Nelson Humphrey now lives (512 North 
Walnut street). First teacher was James Lincoln. The 
resin weeds grew thick and tall, almost as the house. The 
children gathered the resin in great balls, chewed it for 
gum and traded it for pencils — goose quills, and taffy, 
played hoop and hide in the tall weeds and had a better 
time than they have today. Just ask some of the men and 
women of whitened locks, their faces will beam with the 
memory — that precious heirloom of ages — will open up its 
pages, and we know that the half has never been told, 
that the books have failed to reccd them satisfactorily. 
The first schoolhouse built in LeRoy for school purposes 
especially, stood where Mr. T. L. Parks now lives (311 
North Main. A room 24x.'10, frame, with a large loft in it. 
One who was there told me that one day they carefully 
fastened all the windows, locked the door, and sat quietly 
waiting the teacher's coming. After having kept them 
waiting and wondering awhile the teacher dropped among 
them from the loft. Very much crestfallen they all took 
their seats, fun over for that day at leas-t. 

Master would go arou d and help them with their 
arithmetic. Slate pencils were put in goose-quills so as to 
use them all up, girls and boys 13 and 14 went bare-foot to 
school in summer; stood in cNss of reading and spelling; 
children played ball, black-man, jumped the grapevine, 
mumble-peg, and skinned the cat, in what is now the 
heart of the city. D. P. Bunn taught here in 1839-40, 
boarded at Hiram Buck's. Children sang patriotic songs of 
Tippecanoe and Tyler too. 

The two mill tax went into operation, which distributed 
a respectable sum to the counties annually and was used 
exclusively in the common schools. For years there was 
a combination of "free schools" and "pay schools." The 
public money formed the basis, it was used under certain 
condition, either in a wholly free school or in one where 
those who were able and willing paid a subscription to 
help the good cause along. 

In 1854 55 5ti there was a brea.<ing away from isolated 
efforts toward system and supervision. System has this in 
its favor that it makes supervision possible. Mr. J. H. L. 
Crumhaugh, who taught in 185(), sa3S that people were dis- 
satisfied, wanted better schools, better teachers. The 
fact that a man could read, write and cipher was not 
enough education for the times. Great big boys came to 
school to him, larger than himself, and he was no midget. 
But the people were progressive. To need was to have. 
The same energy and pluck that had tided them over other 
obstac es came to their aid and the citizens of the little 
village rose to the occasion. A new seminary was built, 
somewhere between the years 18.')4 b under the auspices of 
the I umberland church. Rev. Robert Patten had charge 
of it from 1854 to '."i". The seminary was considerably in 
advance of the preceding schools. Some of the noble men 
and women who walk your streets tod.iy got all their edu- 
cation inside its sheltering walls, others grace their sta- 
tions in various parts of the state, while other- have gone 



to that bourne where none return. The seminery has the 
reputation of turning out the youngest teacher on record — 
one just sixteen years old. The building stood where S. 
D. VanDeventer's residence now is (412 North Chestnut 
street), ana was used by the graded school until the new 
brick ed Ifice was completed when it was moved and became 
a part of the hotel on the corner of Main and Chestnut. 

In 1864 the citizens decided to have better. Directors 
B. F. Parks, Dr. Cheney and E. E. Greentnan purchased 
block 112 of Conkling's addition, paying $150, and erected 
a two-story brick school hruse. As before, it soon over- 
run its capacity. An ell was built on the north side. 
More room, more teachers; the rooms were not properly 
ventilated: could not keep them warm; clamor grew until 
in 1892, the old building was torn down and the present 
commodious brick and stone building with more modern 
improvements built, at a cost of $11,000, under the direc- 
tors — Joseph Keenan, president; S. L. Langdon, secre- 
tary; Robert Murray, Dr. J. A. Tuthill, Dr. John Haig, L. 
A. Reynolds. Unfortunately a disastrous fire in 1874 de- 
stroyed the town records, otherwise we might have ob- 
tained some valuable data along this line. 

The following statistics have been furnished by Super- 
intendent McDowell: The LeRoy public schools were 
established in 1857 and have grown until there are three 
hundred and fifty four pupils enrolled. There are thirty 
more pupils this year than last, and the enrollment shows 
twenty more boys than girls. The percent of attendance 
for this year — 1903 4 — was 94. Besides the regular course 
in the common branches there is a course in drawing and 
music, and hopes are entertained that a teacher who can 
demote all her time to these necessary arts will he regu- 
larly employed. In the high school there are fifty-four 
pupils and the house is comparatively new, yet it is not 
large enough to accommodate comfortably all enrolled, 
besides others who should be there. 

The present Board of Education is A. J. Keenan, pres- 
ident: M. A. Cline, secretary; committees.- Supplies -.M. 

A. Cline, J. T. Sarver, E. D. Riddle; teachers— Mrs. J. V. 
Smith, W. W Rike, T. L. Parks; building and grounds — 
W. W. Rike, T. L Parks, J. T. Sarver; finance— E D. Rid- 
dle, Mrs. J. V. Smith, M. A. Cline. 

Principals since 1854: 1854 7, Rev. Robert Patten; 
'57 8, John Long; '.58 9, Miss Mallby; '59 60, A. B. Conkling; 
'60 1, -tlr. Harris; '01 2, W. A. Monroe; '02 3, M. Huffman; 
'63 6-!, Noah Waniling; '64-5, W. A. Monroe, second term; 
'65 7, D. C. Clark; '67 8, W. A. Monroe, third term; '68 9, .J. 
W. Barley; '69 70, John X. Wilson; '70-71, Mr. Siiirk: ■71-74, 
C A Barlej; '74 84, M. Jess; '84 7, W.H. ChamberIin;'87-90, 
L. 8. Kilborn: '90 2, J. W. Tavener: '92 5, F. G. Blair; 95 6, 

B. F. Templeton; '96 OC, B. C. Moore; '00-1, C. J. Posey: 
'01-3, S. K. McDowell. 

District 34, teacher, Alexander Humphreys; district 35, 
Jerome harper: district 36, Lucy Youngman: district 37, 
S. M. Kies; district 38, Mollie Gannon; district 39, Carrie 
Chase: district 40, S. K. McDowell; district 41, Charles 
Williams: district 42, Anna Wall; district 43, Grrtrudte 
Wightman. Comprise the Township of Empire; all pro- 
gressive, successful schools. Some have started libraries: 
yards neat, and teachers earnest, conscientious workers. 

To the McLean County History, to J. H. L. Crumbaugh 
and wife, to Prof. McDoweil and to our county superinten- 
dent, John S. Wren, 1 return thanks for assistance rend- 
ered in the preparation of this paper. 



c 



^ -^ THE EAGLE ^ ^ 



r 



UP-TO-DATE PRINTING 




22 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 



Churches of Empire Township 



a 



"By Mrj. E. B. young 



(^ HK Old Meeting House— The pen jjictures and mem- 
ories of the i)ld-linie churches rank first in the 
history of old towns. There is the o'd meeting 
house, solemn and sleepy: bumble bees huramintr about; 
the horses tied to the fence stampinfi at the liie:^: the 
choir in the gallery pitchinsj the tune by strikiny^ the pul- 
pit with the tuning fork; farmers in their sleeves, arousing 
from their sliimb rs in time loj lin the doxoloirv- But the 
o!d church was filled from tioor to ceilinfr with hearty, old- 
fashioned fellowship religion, one ounce of which was 
worth a ton of the spurious article: ''Where's (he old 
churches, the old ministers now ':' Where's the joyful choir 
of sing^ers? Where the leaders who 
sat around the pulpit sajing AmenV 
and listening until the two hours" ser- 
mon got to the seventeenthly's." Hut 
no r'cher legacy has ever been given 
to the children of our forefathers 
than the training received in the old 
meeting house. It is the church pio- 
neers—to those who have labored and 
toiled — as we who have reaped and 
garnered from what they have sown, 
cannot realize. It is to these Christian 
pioneers who founded our churches 
and schools (and we are very, very 
thankful for the few who are spared 
to be with us todaj) that our fair city 
owes its spiritual progress and influ- 
ence, the stability and integrity of its 
citizenship. It is the church people 
we owe much of the progress— the 
success — that has been accomplished 
that never could have been attained 
otherwise. These are the fruits of 
the labors of the men and women who 
have established our grand schools 
and magnificent churches. The build- 
ing of one or two churches in the average town is consid- 
ered the quoto, but here we have four commodious places 
of worship. This could not have been accomplished with- 
out enterprising citizens, possessing a soirit of good will 
and fellowship, that finds expression in many practical 
ways and has drawn to the support of each denomination 
a strong membership of faithful followers. In LeRoy 
sevent\-five years aco churches and .school houses were 
like "angels' visits, few and far between." Today we 
have four prosperous churches in our little city and about 
one thousand membere. The names of these churches un- 
der denominational titles ire as follows: Methodist Epis- 
copal, Cumberland Presbyterian, Christian and Universal- 
ist. The churches having the largest membership are the 
M. E. and C. P. churches. Each one maintains Sabbath 
schools, ladies' aid and missionary societies doing work for 
home and foreign fields. Financially they are reported in 
better condition than for many years; they are all nearlv 
out of delt and the outlook is promising for the future. 
The most successful churches are following in the Mas- 
ter's footsteps; the wise leaders realizing the great work 
to be accomplished. When pastors and members unite 
and work together for the greatest good of all, for "in 
union there is strength,'' what encouragement, when their 




Mrj. E. B 



one thousand members co-operate and work in harmony 
for the higher life and best interests of the Christian 
churches and the entire city. In the hearts of all true 
church members their church is regarded as their second 
home: second in the home feeling of sacred memories and 
associations. This feeling is in unison with the deep af- 
fection that exists in all true home and church life. 

Christian Church History— The Christian church in 
LeKoy was organized in 1888 by Elder T. T. Holton, now of 
Lincoln. A Mrs. Clark when dying had requested the 
services of a minister of this faith, and Mr. Holton was 
called upon. Soon after this a few members of the church 
comtLenced holding services together 
in the C. P. church, others were added 
at intervals, and a church organiza- 
tion was completed. A building com- 
mittee was selected consisting of Mrs. 
James Bonnett, Mrs. S. C. Kaufman, 
L. (J. Crumbaugh, Asa Scott and 
E der Clemens, and the present house 
of worship on the corner of Cherry 
and Walnut was erected and dedi- 
cated on November 8ch, 1891, by T. M. 
Rains, secretary of the Foreign Mis- 
sionary Society. Mr. Clemens served 
as preacher for a short time, he being 
followed by Mr. bhellenbertier, whose 
pastorate was brief. Then R. E. How- 
ell came and held a series of special 
meetings, resulting in ninety-se^en 
accessions. R. Leland Brown was the 
next pastor, serving the church for 
one year and a half. He was followed 
by Mr. York, whose work was suc- 
cessful during a brief pastorate. E. 
O. Sharpe was the next minister. 
During his stay of a little longer than 
two years, the debt on the church 
property was paid and many new members brought in. On 
September 1st, 1899, F. A. Sword began a pastorate which 
lasted three years. He is lovingly held in rememberance 
by all for his work's sake. L. M. Weimer and H. C. Pat- 
terson then served the church for very brief terms. Dur- 
ing Mr. Patterson's stay of a few months the church 
building was repaired and beautified and a parsonage pur- 
chased at a cost of about $1300. The church was thorough- 
ly reorganized, placed upon a firm financial basis, and 
then Rev. Charles Bloom of New York called to serve as 
pastor. The church has just clofed what has b« en in many 
respects the best year of its history. The outlay for run- 
ning expenses has been larger than ever before but all 
bills have been met and a balance remains in the treasury. 
The Sunday school has increased to 275 members and still 
being added to. The Endeavor is sustained by a large 
membership. The Christian Reapers Society is doing 
splendid work. This church organization being compara- 
tively new in this city, necessarily the history is brief. 

Rev. Bloom the present pastor, is young and enthusi- 
astic, and has been very successful in all his ministrations 
and undertakings. As a preacher he represents in bis 
own personality what he urges upon his followers. There 
is no question as to his ability, "for he has run long and 



youn£ 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 



hard with the footman" and will be prepared for the re- 
sults that follow. His parishioners look for success and 
advancement confidently. 

Universalist tHURCH HiSToRv — Mr. Hiram Buck, a 
hotel keeper in LeRoy, entertained a stranger who proved 
to be Rev. E. Manford. in the years before 1S40. When 
they found both were Universaiists they plauned the Uni- 
versalist service in an empty buildidg nearby, illuminated 
by one tallow candle. About a year later another guest 
proved to be a Universalist minister — Rev. I. M. Westfall. 
This time the school house was used in daylight for a • 
service. In 1S44 Rev. Manford again passed this way on 
his wedding trip and again preached to those who wished 
to hear what a Universalist minster had to say. For years 
Manford from time to time thus preached, at one time 
remaining a week and preached every evening. In the 
early part of 1850 Rev. F. J. Briggs preached here in a 
room over a store where the church now stands. He 
preached regularly at tw.j different times in 1850 and 1860. 
Rev. D. P. Bunn, who formerly resided in this vicinity, 
became a Universalist and beg^an to preach. Manford, 
Briggs and Bunn were the preachers more or less fre- 
quently during the fifties. Between 'liS and '72 Mr. Bunn 
preached here once a month. Baker Greenman's Hall was 
the place of services for years. A Mr. Webb supplied the 
pulpit for nix months in '61. which he left for a chap- 
laincy i" the armv. A Mr. Chase was the preacher foi a 
time. About $2000 had been given by Universaiists when 
the old Methodist church was built on the assurance that 
the basemen' would be free for use for all moral purposes. 
The Universaiists met there for a time; (the time came 
when the gathering for an announced Universalist service 
found the doors locked); then the services were held in 
Keenan's hall. For years the services were occasional, 
conducted by Mr. Manford in his travels and then Mr. 
Bunn was called to preach for a time. In the year 1880 
Rev. Thomas Woodrow settled in LeRoy and preached in 
Kcenan's hall on alternate Sundays. He organized the 
church and planned to build a church building but did not 
accomplish it. Miss Carrie Brainard came in 1883, was 
ordained here, and at once set to work, and through her 
earnest efforts and enthusiasm the present church building 
w s erected and dedicated May 18th. 1884. it was in 1883, 
during this faithful woman's ministry, the first church aid 
society, Mercy Chapel Gleaners, was organized, rendering 
valuable assistance not only at that period, but up to the 
present time. After several years pastorate the work 
went on by occasional work by State Superintendents 
Powers, Tomlinson and Brigham. Students from Lombard 
Theo ogic-'l School at Gale^burg supplied the pulpit for 
some time. Rev. C. A. Garst and Dr Straub served half- 
time here for a season. The late Uev. Charles A. Garst, 
whose untimely death wa.s sincerely mourned by all who 
know him, as one of "nature's noblest men," was for one 
short jear the beloved pastor of this parish. 

Dr. Cock, one of the ablest and most successful organ- 
izers of this church, took up the full-time pastorial work 
in 18JIC and remained for five year.*, giving up the work for 
the State Superintendency of Churches. Rev. Carney 
followed hiin for three years and was a faithful and 
efficient minister, and Dr. McQueary, a very fjithful 
preacher, supplied for a time, less than a year. Then t^e 
present pastor. Rev. VV. E. Leavitt, came during the mid- 
summer of 1900 and remains at present time, as the revered 
pastor to interpret the glad gospel news to faithful mem- 
bers of Mercy Chapel. 

The Sunday school is well established, al'O the Junior 
Y. P. C. W. is attended by a good membership. 

The brief sketch covers a great deal of interesting 
history, the old phase of religious thought and practice — 



23 

the coming of a new ilea and long years of earnest contro- 
versy and antagonism in feeling and act— to the days of 
toleration and fraternal intercourse, and co-operation. 
The few words sketch quickly what in detail would require 
pages of history, phases of strenuous life and changes of 
the sixty years transition. 

This church fills a want in the community, and has 
taken on a new lease of life in the last few years and has 
reached a position complimentary to both pastor and people. 
Methodist Episcopal Church History— The history 
of the Methodist Church in LeRoy runs back into pioneer 
days. Three-quarters of a century ago, when the great 
prairie state of Illinois was one vast plain, full of wild 
beasts and wild men, the itinerant Methodist preacher, 
true to his instinct, came to lead the way to civilization, 
and to point men and women to the Land of Promise, and 
to the City that hath foundations whose maker is God. 
In 1830 Rev. James Latta, a missionary was preaching 
throughout the territory. In 1831 Rev. S. R. Begg organ- 
ized a class of eleven members and held preaching in the 
house of Wm, Conaway. The following are the names of 
the original Methodist class: Silas Walters, class lead- 
er, William, Nancy and Chalton Conaway, Matilda Bar- 
nett, James Merrifield and wife, Jane and Rachel Cona- 
way, Catharine Barnett, and Silas and Christina Walters. 
The circuit then embraced Hurley's Grove (Farmer City,) 
Old Town, Bloomington, Randolph's Grove and Hidell's 
Grove (Clinton,) Rev. Wm. Crissey and Wm. Royal fol- 
lowed Brother Begg. From 1834 to 18C-8 the preachers were 
Rev?. Hall, Cummings, French and Mosier; preaching in 
Clearwater school house. In 1838 Edgar Conklin gave the 
ground where Mr. Melvin Cline's residence now stands for 
a church site. After an heroic effort a building 45.\;J0 feet 
was completed and ready for worship by the following 
year; History records that the pulpit was a three-story 
affair and from this high position the preacher sounded no 
uncertain trumpet. The pastors who occupied the pulpit 
during the life of this building, as can be remembered, 
were Revs. Bird, Gentry, Rucker, Hendal, heroic old Sam 
Martin, Samson Shinn, Preston Wood, Mortin, Emerson, 
Barthlew, Aymold, Harker, Smith and Amos Garner The 
old church was finally sold and a more commodious brick 
edifice erected in 1860, at a cost of $10,000. Amos Gardner 
was the pastor and Silas Watters and Deacon Moorehouse 
were the leading spirits in the enterprise. The o'd deed 
shows that the lot was purchased from Dr. Suggett, and 
was deeded to the trustees of the Methodist Episcopal 

Church, in LeRoy. T!ie following were the Trustees; 

Silas Watters, James Kimler, Mahlon Bishop, D. L. Moore- 
house, \V. F. Davidson, Henry Long, Henry C. Dickerson 
and T. J. Barnett. None but self-sacrificing, heroic men 
could have made possible so good a building at a time 
when material and work were so expensive. The following 
pastors have been stationed here and preached in the old 
church in the past thirty-six years;— Greenberry Gardner, 
J. B. Seyraore, P. C. Carroll, Bates, Obenchine, Lacey, 
DeClark, V. C. Randolph, W. H. Cline, S. H. Whitlock, J. 
B Seymore (second term,) A. S. McCoy, J. D. Fry. W. H. 
H. Moore, J R Maxfield, J. C. Kellar, E. A. Hamilton, M. 
Auer.W. M. K, Gooding, J. M. West, B. F. Shipp and T. 
Clark. During these years many have been added 
to the church— many of whome have gone to other cities 
and states, and no small number to their eternal home 

The financial conditions have greatly changed since 
those days. The rrcords show that in the year IS.'ifi. 
this charge paid Pre.ston Wood .$300 and table supplies. It 
now pays its pa.^tor $1,100 and furnishes one of the best 
residences in the city. The meml)ership at present num- 
bers about 400, among whom are some of the noblest sons 
and daughters of Wesley. We have .Sunday school with 



24 



THE H I S T O R I 



an enrollment of 250; an Epworth League with lOO mem- 
bers; a Junior League wUh a membership of 7.5; a Womau 
Home Missionary Society; a Ladies Sooety; ^Queen Ester 
ar^fe and a Busy Bee Mission Band, all of wh,ch a.d the 
work of the church and make it influential in the commun- 

"'Themen and women who laid the foundation of Method- 
is.n in this charge were of pure Wesleyan type; they d.d 
not hesitate to refute what to them was heresy, or 
denounce In saint and sinner what they deemed sinful. If 
They felt like saying Amen, they said .t, if they wanted 
to shout, they shouted. People in those days were mostly 
poor and their homes did not have luxuries of these days, 
but stood wide open to the brethren and on quarterly 
meetin<r occasions it was no uncommon thing to have from 
nve to fifteen people in the house for two or three days. 
W.,at glorious times they had. Fried chicken and corn 
bread baked in the old fashioned oven; what zeal, what 
sacrifice, what sermons, what camp-meetings, what joy 
in believing. The people came then for fifteen or twenty 
miles and stayed until it was over. Time would fail me to 
speak of Father Silas Walters, John Watters, Deacon 
Moorehouse, .Tames Kimler, Grand-father Bishop, Col ins, 
Whitaker, NuUandahost of glorious women, of whom 
are Sisters Conkling, Gibbs, Barr, Long, Rike, K.mler, 
Johnson, Baddley, King, Mrs. James Kimler, Morehouse. 
Morris Haig, Martin, Hendryx and Kershaw, who gave 
the first $20(t toward this new temple. These all -died in 
the faith," but they have gone to a better country, that 
is a heavenly; wherefore God is not ashamed to be called 
their God, for He has prepared for them a city. 
" Servants of God, well done, 
Thy glorious warfare's past; 
The battle's' fought, the race is won 
And ihou art crowned at last. " 
The present liou..e of worship is one of the most modern 
edifices in Central Illinois and was erected during the 
summer of 1902 at a cost of $18,000 It was dedicated on 
January 3, 1903. Rev. T. C. Illiff, D, D., preached the 
dedicatory sermon. The church is a monument to the 
energy of Rev. Thornton Clark, who was both solicitor 
and chairman of the Building Committee, 

The exterior demensions of this new building is 98x,o 
feet On the first floor is the main auditorium, Sunday 
school room, six class rooms and three vestibules. The 



CALMEMOIRE 
second floor has the grand parlor, ladies parlor, cloak 
room, dining room, kitchen and the pastor'3 study^ It i» 
of red Danville brick, Bedford stone trimmings, Bangor 
slate roof, opalescent glass windows. The auditorium is 
finished in quarter sawed white oak, the rest in white 
southern pine, walls frescoed, lighted with electricity and 
heated by two large tubular air furnaces. The seating' 
capacity of the auditorium and Sunday school room com- 
bined is 600. 

At the last annual Conference Mr. L. J. Owen a mem- 
ber of the church, was honored by being elected to the 
next General Conference, which meets in Los Angeles 
California-the highest honors in the gift of the Cburch 

*° TL^'p^^ors of this church have usually been good men 
and fee less in their preaching of what they believed to 
be true ^Vith charity for all and malace toward none 
this church is a blessing to many and holds an open door 

'° U has been four years since Rev. Clark took charge of 
this church, and his administration has been very success- 
ful not only from a financial standpoint, but from a spint- 
nal standpoint, as well. No minister ever at this charge 
did more for the success of church and citizens of LeRcy 

^'^OufchuShes are the beacon light of our city holdin. 
aloft the ideals that insure a great and glorious future 

; compiling a deseriptive history of the churches, it is 
fitt L that we pay tribute to the pastors, the representa- 
fi" of^he churches who seem peculiarly adapted to their 
various charges. They are remarkable for th»ir g ea 
preparation for their life's work. They are ministers that 
Ton not be unscholarly men if they could; they could 
Tot be the embodiment of intellectual narrowness and one- 
sided ness if they would. The two tendencies, happiest of 
deal conditions! the twocorrect each other; their union of 
effort for the spiritual and moral good of the entire ci y 
sTat fvins in a high degree. We are indebted to City 
Attorney Riddle, Revs. Clark, Bloom and I.eav.tt, for 
fhPir a^stance and courtesy in furnishing history, ac- 
curate «" "and dates of their respective churches; it ts 
ow ng to this fact, principally, that this history of ou 
citizens most valued possessions, is probably the most 
complete and accurate ever given. 




2). 'Kiddie 



Attorney at Lattf 
andj^otary Tublic 



^ajWRACTS, XOnts. HeedJ and all 

Le^al InJlrumentJ correctly drattin. 

Collectionj. SetllemenU of EatateJ and 

deneral legal bajlnejj gl-Ven prompt and 

^ J^ X* ^ '^ 



Le'ROy, ILLIT^OIS 



THEHISTORICALME MOIRE 25 

Old BooKs £J /cJ /ij 

"By Mtj. John McConnell 

S 4^ 4^ 



(~\ OOKS are some of the best friends of civilization. 
"S Of all the privileg-es we enjoy in this Twentieth 
-._ ^ Century there is none, perhaps, for which we oujjht 
to be niore thankful than for the pleasure derived 
frnm our ea-*y access to books. The feeling that books 
are real friends is present to all who really love books. 
Some relate to us the history and events of past ages, 
while others teach us how to live, and others, how to die: 
some, by amusing, drive away our cares and troubles and 
lif;hten our spirit.-: others open up to us various avenues 
and upon their information we can safely rely. We only 
partially appreciate our good fortune in belonging to the 
Twentieth (Jentury, and some 
times we wish that we had 
not lived quite so soon, and 
long for a glimpse of the 
booksof the future — even the 
scho'il books (if one hundred 
years hence — as we long to 
to see the bo"ks of the cent- 
ury past. A hundred years 
ago books were extremely ex- 
pensive and h.rd to get, and 
many of our most delightful 
book were still unwritten 
such as the works of Scoti, 
Thackeray, Dickens, Balmer, 
Lyttcm and others, not to 
mention living authors. Old 
books are our most prescious 
inheritance. VVe may now 
sit in our libraries and yet 
be in all the quarters uf the 
earth. We may travel with 
captain Cook or Darwin, or 
with Kint:sley orRuskin, who 
can -•-how us more t'^an ever 
we could see for ourselves. 
The world of bonks indeed 
has no limits. Humbolt will 
carry us away far beyond the 
sun or the stars. History 
stretches out behind us, and 
geo'ogy will carry us back 
millions of years before the 
the creation of man. We 

can m ike our own library a garden of Eden without itsone 
drawb ick, for all is open to us including the forbidden 
fruit of tie tree of knowledge, for which we are told our 
first Mother sacrificed all the rest. Here we may not read 
only the history of our United States, of our yrand stnte 
of [llinii'S. of our grand county of McLean and our native 
town of LeRov, hut we may read the most important his- 
tories of the world: the most exciting i ravels, most inter- 
esting storl-s and beautiful poems. In fancy we may meet 
the most eminent statesmen, poets and philosophers. 

In the old days bonks were rare and dear. Our ances- 
tors had great difficulty in procuring them. We remem- 
ber when we could extract pleasure in committing the 
almanac to memory, an.i the pride and satisfaction exper- 
ienced in the possession of a copy of Uncle Tom's t^abin, 
Pilgrims' Progress, Arabian Nights, Children of the 




Mrs. John McConnell 



Abbey and Robinson Crusoe. The old school books were 
r -garded as sacred treasures. Webster's primmer and 
reader, and later. Webster's spaller, dictionary, McGutfey's 
and Saunder's readers and spellers. The Bible was used 
as a text book and reader id many schools. There is a 
struggle for existance and a survival of the fittest among 
books as in histories. "Age is a recommendation in four 
things"— old wood to burn, old wine to drink, old friends 
to trust and old books to read— this last is accepted with 
quaiilications, as the latest books of history and science 
contain the most accurate information, the most trust- 
worthy conclusions, while the books of older histories of 

races and people have great 
interest and fascination from 
their very age and distance, 
yet we must admit that we 
enjoy and feel more at home 
with those of our century. 
The history of our own na- 
tion, our own state, county 
and town, and our own peo- 
ple. To the lover of books 
the very mention of the es- 
says of Bacon, Addison, Mc- 
Cauley, Hume, Ruskin and 
Emerson, and the names of 
Shakespeare, Milton, Byron, 
Longfellow bring a crowd of 
memories and recollections 
of pleasant home hours after 
the labors and cares of the 
day. The next decade will 
be of great value to the al- 
refidy priceless work of the 
McLean County Historical 
Society in the wav of dona- 
tions of books. The time al- 
lotted men will have passed 
with those who have partici- 
pated in the history of the 
state and county — Books, pa- 
pers, manuscripts in great 
quantities will be at the 
service of this society. The 
continued activities of this 
association in the affairs of 



McLean county is assured to the satisfaction of all lovers 
of history and its preservation know that their contri- 
butions will be in good company. Enrolled and deposit- 
ed with thi-i society will be every kind of book printed in 
Illinois in the form of public document, history and 
general literature, book" from the libraries of presidents, 
eminent ra^-n and au'hors. The idea prevails quite-natur- 
ally, perhap^J, that all that is most desirable in literature, 
in books or author.s. lies east of us. Are there any authors 
in McLean County ? We who live in McLean county, in 
the heart of the middle VVest, "The Heart of the world's 
heart," gladiv and proudly answer yes ! Thanks to the 
manv authors of this grand state and county. The East is 
aw;ikening to a rea izHtiun that we have authors who 
have found an aliund.ince of material worih crystaliz ng 
into literature. Among the authors of this county are 



26 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 



two whom LeRoy will elatily claim: The late Mr. A. O. 
King-, father of E. W. Kinff, was one of the authors of the 
Western Grammar, published in 184o; onr esteemed towns- 
man. Nelson Goodrich Humphrey is the author of the 
interesting book of poems, entitled ''Random Shots," pub- 
lished in 18S4. 

"Shakespeare and the Bible have been grouped as the 
grreatest instrumentalities in making- English literature 
what it is." There are here many vt-ry old copies of the 
Bible— that Boot of all books— the Book that is solid gold, 



and the Book containing the history of the Greatest 'ife 
the tragic death of the Man of Galilee, the Prince of Peace. 
This Book possesses an interest and fascination iinequaled 
in all other books. "Age cannot wither, nor custom stale" 
its grand majestic, or infinite variety. The most cherish- 
ed, the most popular of all books ever published in the 
past or present, shines out anew with each passing cen- 
turj; the criterian, not only of home, of the soul, of the 
sentiments, but the Book first on mother's knee, first under 
the student's lamp, and the last at our bedside. 



fot^ikes 




TAi LQR( 



^^ •£ shot£f Ihe 
^*^ largesiline 
of tefoolen goods 
in the City. For 
Suits and O-Ver- 
coats i^l Trous- 
ers, ^tyle and 
prices guaran- 
t eed. J» J» J^^ 

425 A. MAIJ^ -TT'RE.ET. 

"Bloomington, III. 



WM. STODDART 



MERCHANT TAILOR 



FIT AMD WORK QUARANTEBD. REPAIRING AND 
CLEANING NEATLY DONE 



EsKEW Building 



/_£■ ROY, ILL. 



Mrs. Kate Dudderar 
The Milliner 

OF... 

I Solicit your Tatronage 



Exclusive Millinery 
^ House ^ 12} 




RLnOMINGTON.!L.L 

Atmosphere and motive power are riyht here for 
fostering and promoting this work of art. 

Seibel Hats at prices usually asked for dowdy 
millinery. 



J 



C V. GA'R'RETT 



A-RTIST 
THOTOCRATHEH 



Childrenj 'Pholographj a Specialty 

^afie ElexJafor 
Unity -Building "BLOOM tJ^GTOJV . ILL. 



The City BaKery 



M. SHKIGLEy, 
Proprietor 



Fresh Bread, Pies and Cakes 
always on hand 



Le-ROX 



ILLINOIS 



THE HISTORICAL ME MOIRE 



27 



Ye 01d=Tinie Spelling School 

By Mrs. L. A. HiKe 
^ ^ ^ 








HO is there of us who does not read with pleasure 
of those far off days that we spent in the little 
red school house by the roadside? What a pe- 
culiar fa8ci"ation lingers around the dingy room with its 
warped fluors, its battered seats covered with initials 
carved by some boys with a Jacli-knife. 

"The charcoal frescoes on its wall; 
Its door sill betrriyin^ 
The fleet that, creepinjj slow to school 
Went storming out to playintf. 
We have but tn close our eyes and our mind is filled with 
reminiscences of various descriptions, from the debating 
and spelling school down to 
some passing fancy we had 
for some lass or lassie, in 
checked apron or striped 
shirt. We may not ourselves 
own to such a fancy, but in all 
probability we have not for- 
gotten the shy glances, the 
tender tone, or the stolen 
kisses of our more fortunate 
schoolmates. 

We seem never to get too 
old to sit and dream of those 
dear old days, that stand out 
in our memory with greater 
prominence than aay other 
event; and as we ponder over 
them, we recognize the same 
thrill of joy, ttie same incen- 
tive to achieve great things 
in the formation of words by 
letters, or the genuine good 
will and unity existing be- 
tween the participants of an 
old fashioned spelling school. 
In the days dating- baclj 
thirty jears ago, spelling 
Seemed to be one of the main 
issues in our school life, and 
no day's work was complete 
without the teacher ranging 
the boys and girls in a line on 
the fl lor to spell. If a word 
was m'ss spelled any one be- 
low spelling it correctly, pissed above those missing it, 
and the one standing at the he.id of the class each niglit 
received a "head mark;'' then passed to the foot; only, 
perhdp-f, to repeat the same nroceedinys the next dav. 

[ remember distinctly the lontr eveninijs at home, 
around the center stand, with books piled up before us for 
the purpose of familiarizing ourselves with the next days' 
lessons. And among them all, no books were so carefully 
studied is the old elementary speller. Often our p;irents 
remonstrated with us for neglecting our other studies, but 
we invariably replied; "We are after the head mark to- 
morrow." It made very little difference if arithmetic 
lagged behind, or geometry cauie out a failure, or geogra- 
phv was drug, history might pass into a proverb and al- 
gebra stand for nothing but unknown quantities, just so we 
got the head mark. I imagine even yet; I can feel the 
pjd propelling desire within, for the supremacy in spelUag 




Mrs. Z,. A. "RiKe 



and the proper derivation of words. Knowledge is power, 
and with some the desire to gain it amounts to an insati- 
able thirst, leaving no stone unturned to reach the top- 
most round in the drill of knowledge, while laggards are 
constantly filling up the school vacuum, forgetting that 
ignorance is the curse of the world. The art of framing 
words by letters is a power not achieved in a single day or 
week, but comes only through earnest application and in- 
cessant toil. 

Hut more than any other event connected with those 
old days, is the spelling school. There were those who 
loved spelling for its own sake, and who, smelling the bat- 
tle from afar, came to try 
their skill in the tournament, 
hoping to freshen their laur- 
els they had won in their 
younger days: for the old and 
tl-e young came from every 
direction, trigged out in their 
Sunday best — bright gari- 
baldes of the latest make, 
and bright ribbons that ri- 
valed still brighter cheeks. 
How shall I attempt to de- 
scribe the old-time spelling 
school, with its charm and 
its back-sets? It stands out 
with vividness and variety, 
the one might set aside dur- 
ing the sx months school for 
genuine pleasure and recrea- 
tion; but the excitement be- 
gins when the choosing up 
time comes. The two per- 
sons, who ever they might 
be, appointed to choose up, 
come forward, take the 
broomstick and toss it from 
hand to hand to decide which 
should have first choice. One 
toss it to the other, who held 
it last where he happened to 
catch it, then the first placed 
his hand above the second, 
and so the hands were alter- 
nately changed to the top, 
the one who held the stick last without room for the 
other to take hold, had gaintd top and had the choice, and 
began a thorough scan of the sea of faces to be sure he 
would select the best spelli-r. Soon all present, except a 
few of the old fol.c, found th mselves ranged in opposing 
hosts; the poor spellers lagging in with what grace they 
could at the foot of the two divisions. The village squire 
or other important personage opened the book and began 
to give out the words to the two who had chosen up; and 
now the excitement run to fever heat; and one finds them- 
selves wondering if good soellers are born and not made, 
for their facility reminds one of the mathmatical prodi- 
gies that crop out every now and then to bewilder the 
world; while many think they know more about the spell- 
ing books than o d Noah Web-ster himself. There is also an- 
other class called sweetheart, who care more about their 
sweet nothings than any part they may have in the word 



28 



THE HISTORICAL ME MOIRE 



spelling, and occa8ionally there can be heard from the 
lips of some pretty maiden: 

"I'm sorry that I spelt the word, 
I hate to go above you, 
Because — the brown eyes lower fell — 
Because, you see, I love you." 

At any rate, however, this may be, those who never took 
part in an old-time spelling- match, have missed much of 
real genuine pleasure out of their lives, let alone a 
good drilling into the intricacies of learning how to place 
every letier in every word in the English language. Right 



here is a good chance for a moral — that were there a few 
more spelling schools now a days mixed with the study of 
Greek, Latin and Shake-peare, there might be a more 
complete mastery of the intricacies of word framing. 

But we piss on and on, paresing, phrasing and spelling, 
with a dash of sunshine here, a shadow there, never get- 
ting out of touch with the dear old school days. How true 
it is — 

"We live to learn in life's hard school, 
How few who pass above him 
, Lamei t their triumph and his loss. 
Like her — because they love him." 



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THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRB 



Newspapers of Empire Township 



Bjr John H. Harptr 



29 



("^I LLOW me to expreag to you my thanks and 
^-iV- appreciation for the honor conferred In the 
_^y V^ selection to contribute somethingf I may know, 
and some that may po^siblv be overdrawn, or 
hardly accurate, in reference to Newspapers and Newpa- 
per men of LeRoy — past and present conditions. My 
memory may be at fault is why It is imitated that all may 
not be actually correct, but I trust so nearly true that It 
will pass with not unfriendly criticism. It Is a worthy 
and enterprising action In thus making history for LeRoy 
on this Important question. And in speaking on this topic 
I sm pleased to quote a few words from the president of 
State Historical Society. Dr. J. F. Snyder, and Mr. L. D. 
Carver. State Librarian, of Maine: — "The local and ed- 
itorial columns of a Newspaper por- 
tray to the deserning mind the char- 
acteristics, asperatlons and achieve- 
ments of the people in your nerghbor- 
hood, respectively, and the community 
as well, in a light that would other- 
wise be lost to the world. The adver- 
tising pages of the country press 
more truly represent the people 
of their local i t i e s — their mo- 
tives, incentives and peculiarities — 
than can be done by the pencil of the 
artist combined by the pen of the 
philosopher. The newspaper, day by 
day, week by week, mirrors all phases 
of human life, and prints with fidelity 
all transpiring events of interest 
within its sphere of activity. Its 
pages are the best posslb e source 
from which students of history, and of 
social and political problems can 

obtain the'r material.* For that service the newspaper is 
invaluable, and well nigh indispensible. It records acts 
which may rise up to glorify a people long after their 
bones have crumbled to dust and their national existence 
ceases — acts that stand out on the printed pages to meet 
the eye of the critic, the historian and the student of 
history — hence an unassailable witness to our honor or our 
shame in all lime to come. To the en.i that our life, with 
hopes and fears, with its faith and courage, with its suc- 
cesses and failures, may be fully understood and appre- 
ciated and justly described by those who come after u?-. 
Let us labor unceasingly to preserve the fullest and best 
records a people can transmit to their successors — a file 
of newspapers of our day and generation." 

Every newspaper man and every editor and editress, 
who is not afraid of their shadows, we ought to regard as 
among the most responsible and prominent in our midst. 
Away back in the year 1856 we learn that a man by the 
name of James Levens started a small paper In the city, 
using what is known as a Guernsey job press, and said 
paper was called "The LeRoy Observer." We know 
nothing about his history or the character of his paper, 
and we und»-rstand he remained here only a few months. 
So far as we are informed the tl\en sprightly little 
village of L-Roy was unknown to the newspaper world 
for many years. 

In 1871-2 the writer of these lines started and published 



from new material, the best that money could buy, "The 
Sucker State," which he made lively during its existence. 
He desired company and wrote to one J. W. Wolfe, who 
came here and commenced the publication of a paper 
which he calleo, "The LeRoy Exchange." Each one of 
us did well, flaanclally, but might have done better 
if we had been more gentle and amiable, but we would 
not be peaceable and after taking an invoice of our be- 
longings and considered how we had affli ted an intelligent 
and cultured people with unnecessary floods of person- 
alities, while catering to the tastes of the visclous, we 
both pulled out for untried pastures. We did not do as 
well as we knew, and of course the wrongs were boomerangs 
Messrs. Jeff Barnett, Cheny, Parks, Keenan, Moore, King 
and many others, were men who stood 
by ns in all our wars for justice, and 
we got It when one of the above 
named gentlemen Informed us both 
that our time was out. Mr. W. was 
located near where Mr. Ayton's place 
of business now is, and Col J. S. H., 
was located over Harnett's store, 
with the entire west end of the house 
lettered In bold letters, "The Sucker 
State,"witha large silk flag near the 
entrance, and a banner across the 
street reading, "Republican Head- 
quarters." We were bitter and hos- 
tile in editorials and write-ups 
through our papers, though friendly 
enough outside, so much so that 
observers concluded that we were 
partners, and the fuss was a premedi- 
tated and planned play. Not so; and 
we went down together, with ice- 
cream suits and railroad passes only to carry us away. In 
a few days Mr. W. found himself In Nashville, Tennessee, 
with cases on a morning paper, and H., in Des Moines, Ii., 
negotiating for a printing office without a cent to make 
the first payment, but we had one of the ablest men in the 
city to stand good for our promise to pay, and that has 
been our stronghold all through life. Wolf had some 
splendid qualities, and he was as.sharpas tacks. We liked 
hitn for his good traits of ch iracter and no man was ever 
blessed with a kinder or milder wife. She was a minister- 
ing angel to a man of genius, although enveloped with a 
man of immoral habits in those days. 

Samuel Roland then started a little sheet and had It 
printed in Bloomington, but It soon breathed itself obt of 
existence. 

Then Charles Davis tried his hand, calling his paper 
"The LeR.iy Enterprise." This was about the year 1877. 
We do not know anything about his proceedings, but we 
learned sometime since that he moved out West. He was 
said to be a fair editor. 

Perhaps it was in 1878 that A. G. -Smith came here and 
started "The LeRoy Free Press," and he edited it with 
abilit-7 up to 1887, when he sold out to your bumb'e servant, 
who had run in a new office and had started "The LeRoy 
Eagle," over VanDeventer's drug store. In this office we 
contracted with T. L. Buck to publish for him anew 
temperance paper, called "The Prohibiticn Statesman." 




John H, Harptr 



30 

Mr. Buck run one of the ablest papers ever publislied in 
LeRoy. It increased its circulation and was accomplishing 
a wonderful sight of good. It was firm, positively influan- 
tial because of its truthfulness and its editor! lis of good 
sense and pointed moral worth to the community, but 
there came a sudden halt, and we were compelled to turn 
our attention elsewhere, while The Free Press was running- 
itself. We sold to Rutledge and Crumbaugh and they run 
the ''LeRoy Democrat," and The Statesman went to the 
city of Bloomingion and came out as "The T^ancet." In 
1875, we started ".The LeRoy .Journal," and printed it in 
Farmer City, a young gentleman bv the name of Brown, 
a clerk in a yrocfry store; being its local editor. 

The Free Press was published regularly unt'l we sold 
out to W. C. Devore, who changed the name to "The Le- 
Roy Journal," and it continued until the ontfit was de- 
stroyed by fire. Then the Free Press came fourth again 
in a new outfit, run bv the writer, but before we did so «-e 
sent three printing offices from LeRoy, one to Farmer 
City, one to Coifiax, and one to Chatsworth, So you see, 
Ladies and Gentlemen, we were "muchly" in the business. 
N"xt came George P. Ri)wlev, Keys, Murray, Clevenger, 
Hendrvx, Nutt, Mckenzie & Young, Paul and Gale Smith, 
Harper again, then Tate, then Clevenger again, who is. 
still in the business But before this last scrap of history 
J. M Z Uhoefer bad purchased, the Joiirna',' which had 
raised. Phoenix-like, from the debris, and continued to 
speak with freedom to an audience of freemen. This oc- 
curred in 18'»H, and it is still advancing with a speed un- 
paralleled among country newspapers. 

A country local newspaper^bould have all the news, 
as much so as any daily, and never tuppress.any of it; for 
love of money. It should tVot wink at iniquity at any 
time or under any circumstances, always steering clear of 
sickening flattery and always calling everythings by its 
right name, if called at all. Sympathize with tne poor and 
unfortunate, but warn them of their responsibilities in 
life, and that good habits and pure thoughts will lift thein 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 



out of their condition. Tbe same alvice will apply to the 
rich and self aristocracy, but don't shield them on account 
of the golden calf, and fawn around them for approval. 
Keep it prominent before the people that selfishness, 
untruth, false trimmings, and evasions lower the standard 
and dignitv of a newspaper. 

Recently a paramount question WIS before the people. 
More essential to health and morals than all other topics 
on earth, and the papers were silent when they ousht to 
have been plain, frank and outspoken. The defeat of the 
main issue was a shame and a calamity. The successful 
subject was a matter of r'ollars and cents, while the other 
o e was of blood and tears, and if the "Statesmen had 
been in the fight, or on the ground, even, the plain unvar- 
nished truth would have been spread all through the citv, 
which every good man and woman would have endorsed 
and perhaps would have h ad its influence for truth among 
the unfortunate. A newspaper in this land shoud be bold 
in declairiVig the real truth on every occasion, because in 
a great measure it is the educator. 

We are not anxious for noteriety and we hope whoever 
corrects and edits this manuscript will see fit to drop us 
out of sight. We feel that we are the'Smatlest of all of 
them. In the 163 papers we have started, purchased and 
sold in the different states, ar.d many of them are running 
today, out of which large fortunes have piled up, we now 
find oursetf 72 years of ape, located in this city in a hum- 
bledustv looking.cottage which many of our more fortun- 
ate brethren woul.d not camp in. No one centured — its 
all right as it is. The lesson learned is a good one to us — 
the rare is not always to the swift. We started too fast. 
We are glad that we are still among the living and that 
we are permitted to dwell in a pluckv newspaper city with 
the girl from Sangamon, who stood up with us in 1S60. 
The latch string of our wigwam still hangs out. When 
we leave here we exoect to triumphatitly enter the celes- 
tial gates of The Golden City. 



R. C. Hallowell fe Co 

Funeral Directors and Embalmers 



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THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 



31 



01d=Time Music 



Sj' //*laen Goodrich Hamphrty 
^ ^ ^ 



y OUR humble servant has been requested to write 
y a few lines as to the oldeii time music la LeKoy 
~ ' and vicinity. It makes all the difference how we 

handle the twenty-six etters of the English alphabet or 
how notes on the musical scale are placed. It appears an 
easy suViject, but you remember tie laJian said, "Its the 
easiest thing in the world to sie a white man mow with a 
scythe." You can tune a violi'i too high or you can tune 
it to low; if to high, jou break the strings; if too low, it 
makes dull music. So it is with the human mind, hence 
the necessity of beinjr properly fortified, and get in be- 
tween the extremes and not be a crank, which applies to 
all lines of thought. In 1861, 
just as the blue birds came 
from the south, our people 
came from the east and lo- 
cated a little west of LeRoy. 
Older ■Settlers say that twen- 
ty years earlier was the time 
for more heartrendering 
melancholy music mingUd 
with the tears from the pio- 
neer girls and boys from 
other states who were com- 
pelled to leave their sweet- 
hearts by the decree of their 
parents to emegrate to better 
their conditio.! — which the 
young people then could not 
fully understand. The wild 
birds were more numerous 
and filled the air with a grand 
mixture of melodies unknown 
today, viz , the geese; brant, 
crane, prairie chicken, etc. 
U icle Hiram Buck owned 
the first musical instrument, 
bno«nasa tuning fork, and 
led the old-time airs with Mrs. 
Simeon Gibbs, Mrs. Dr. Wel- 
don, N.incy Walters, Amer 
ica Watters. Silas Witters, 
Richard Kimler, B. F. Parke, 
Sidney Baker, Esick Green- 
man and many others. La- 
ter. Ca'cin Himson came to 
the front and led the music on many occasions that the 
older people can more fully appreciate. 

In ISiil, the writer listened to the echoes of the first 
LeRoy band. 

Uncle Ben Parks made at that time about all the bif-s 
known in Empire township. There *vere only twochurchrs 
in LeRny then, the M. E., and the C. P. churches. At the 
M. E. church Uncle Silns Watters led the music to a finish, 
carrying his tuning-fork in his head. When the songs 
vfcre pitched too high some of the singers would tip-toe it 
on the highest notes, beating the time with their bodies. 
Rev. A. S. Thomas did the same thing at the C. P. church, 
sometimes up among the stars, at others, duller music. 
Uncle Hiram Buck continued one of the wide-a-wakes, and 
when occasion required it, •' fired up " and was not be- 
holden to scientific men or musical stars, In order to have 




^. G. Humphrey 



plenty of good old-time music when all pitched In and did 
the best they knew with a spirit that was contagious. 

I feel it my duty at this point to remember my kind 
and aged father, especially the day he borrowed Joseph 
Patterson's violin, telling him that he knew a good many 
old-lime tunes stored away for future use. When he 
brought those tunes out on the strings the writer told 
Patterson they had been in his head more than seventy 
years and they ought to be aired once in every fifty years. 
He did it good order and seemed happier than the listen- 
ers. 

The first organ that I remember was placed in the new 
M. E. church, now known as 
the Masonic Temple. The 
M. E. people then felt that 
they were about the whole 
thing. 

Out east, at the Mt. Olive 
church the voices of Ham- 
ands and Clearwatters could 
be heard into the small hours 
of the night. 

in about 1860 the first brass 
band of LeKoy was organized 
with about ten members. J. 
V. Smith, Ben Parks, A. E. 
Lewis, A. B. Conkling, C. S. 
Moorehouse,E. E Greenman 
and S. D. Baker are the only 
ones I now rembmber. A. B 
Conkling was made leader 
and Phillip Kadel. of Bloom- 
ington, our teacher, and a 
fine one he was. He would 
come from Bloomington and 
stay three days for the mod- 
est sum of ten dollars— com- 
ing every other week. We 
progressed so far as to mur- 
der several pieces in a short 
time — America, the Star 
Spangled Banner, Dixie, etc., 
got badly hurt, but after a 
few months we took to |the 
top of the Parks building and 
made ithe air tremble with 
our efforts. Later, people said we did fine. I think if. 
was in 18(i2. we were called to play for the burial of the 
soldiers of the civil war. Mr. Hartstock, I think, was the 
first one; we went to Cheney's Grove lo play for his funer- 
al. Later, we played for several others. We played at a 
number of picnic parties and got a good dinner for it, but 
we were not served with money at any time. It was al- 
ways a free gratis job on every occas.on. Our pay was an 
appreciative audience, filthy lucre never given to help 
pay for our training, but we got along very nicely, never- 
theless, until September, 1864, when our family moved to 
Champaign. After that time the organization was con- 
tinued and prospered for years, as I was told, and learned 
from my friends from time to time, and I am told it still 
lives. 

Would greatly enjoy attending the meeting to which 



32 



THE HISTORICAL ME MOIRE 



you invite me, and would especially enjoy bearing the 
band play which I helped to org-an'ze forty four years 
apo, and meet those friends whom I used to know and 
mingle with in my jouuger dajs and whose names an 1 
faces love t ) ren •tn'->:r and which b ivi alw lys been very 
dear to me, because of those early associations. 

Years rolled alonj.; other churches were erected, and 
orchestras were seen leaning back, fiddling with all their 



might. New solos, duets, and quartets were sung to 
music composed in foreign lands, perhaps, when listening 
to the murmuring water-falls. But mv honest opinion Is 
that the songs by which our old time fathers and mothers 
sang their children Into dreamland or their songs of divine 
worship were just as acceptable to Almighty God and to 
mankind, as much of the music from the musical experts 
of 1904. 



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THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRS 

War Times in Empire Township 

"ByJ. R^. Co-Oty 
^ ^ ^ 



33 



JN accordance with your request for me to write a 
short article on the war history of Empire Town- 
ship and immediate vicinity, in compliance with 
said request and by way of introduction, I will say 
that after consulting with old residents and on examina- 
tion of all the history at my command I find that there 
has been persons residing in the township and immediate 
vicinity who have served as soldiers in all the wars from 
the Revolution down to and in the Spanish American war. 
I find that Cap ain John Karr and John Solidav who once 
lived in the locality served in the war of the Revolution. 
The former is buried in Heyworth Cemetery, Randolph 
Grove, and the latter occu- 
pies an unknown grave in the 
old part of Oali Grove ceme- 
tery, east of this city. 

In th • war of 1812 I find 
that Daniel Crumbaugh 
served a? a soldier. He was 
born December 7, 17yl, in 
Frederii;k county, Maryland; 
came to what is now Empire 
townshipiii 1830 and died May 
19, 1874; is buried in Oak 
Grv^vj cemetery. 

In the Black Hawk war 
(1832) I fiaJ tb it five persons 
served as soldiers who for- 
merly lived in Empire town- 
ship or immediate vicinity. 
Their names are as follows: 
James Johnson, who enlisted 
in Captain Covell's company 
of mounted rangers June 3. 
1832, and was mustered out 
August 3, 1832. He was not 
in the ske Jaddleof Stillman's 
run, as has been stated by 
some of the Oid Settlers. Mr. 
Johnion was born in the year 
180 8 ard died in 1866: is 
buried in Gilmore cemetery, 
east of the city. Nathan S. 
Brittoi, Peter Buckles, Sam- 
uel Owen and Isaac Murphy 
also served as soldiers iu.the 
war, thelormer are buried in Oak Grove cemetery and 
the latter emigrated to Oregon and died there. 

In the war with Mexico (184(j) 1 find that the following 
persons who once lived in Empire township or vicinity, 
served as soldiers in said war, v z : Charles H. Kutledge, 
William A. Toppase, George Uunion, Daniel KoUnd, liob- 
ert S. boward. John G. Cranmer, James York, J. J. Crum- 
baugh, Henry CrumbaugH and U. M. Phillips. The latter, 
Mr. H. M. Phillips, served in the war with Mexico in Co. 
G.. 1st Regt. 111. Volunteers for the ptriod of one year, 
that being the term of his enlitment. He also served in 
the war of the Rebellion as Captain of Co. I., 3?th Regt. 
III. Volunteers, his commission being dated Sy^. ember 6, 
1861, and date of mu,ter into th ; United -s/tes s< rvice 
October 11, 18til. He was probably the first officer mustered 
into the service from Empire township in t/e war for the 




J. /V Co-Oey 



Union, 1861 to 1865. He lies buried in Oak Grove, ceme- 
tery, east of the city. 

In the war for the Un.on, from 1861 to 1S65, LeRoy and 
surrounding country did its full share. A volume of many 
pages could be written on the enlistment, service, battles 
engaged in, sutfering of soldiers in rebel prisons, the weary 
marches, the monotonous camp life and their presence at 
the surrender of R. E. Lee at Appomattox and Joe John- 
son in North Carolina, but this article is not intended to 
enter into an extended history of that kind but rather to 
relate a few things that is not generally known concern- 
ing the war history of the Township and vicinity. 

I find that the first soldiers 
to enlist from Empire Town- 
ship in this war were William 
Gear, Arthur E. Hutton and 
Thomas S. Lovera. They en- 
listed from LeKoy May 25th, 
1861, in Comoany E, Uth Vol- 
unteer Infantry. The former 
died October 5th, 1862, of 
wounds reccfived in battle. 
The first officer mustered into 
the service from the Town- 
ship was Captain H. M. Phil- 
lips of Company I, 39th Illi- 
nois Volunteer Infantry. He 
was mustered into the service 
October 11th, 18BI; wounded 
in the hand and taken pris- 
oner May 10:h, 1861, at the 
battle of Drury's Bluff, Va. 
Mustered out December olh, 
1864, at expiration of his 
term of service iHe lies buried 
east of the city in Oak Grove 
Cemetery. Captain John M. 
Longstreet was the first cav- 
alry officer mustered into 
the service from Vbe Town- 
ship. He was mustered into 
the service as captain of 
Company L, Illinois Cavalry, 
October 15th, 1861. Captain 
John F. Alsup was wounded 
more times in battle than 
any other soldier that went from this city, he having re . 
ceived four gunshot wounds and was once knocked down< 
by a piece of shell. He enlisted from LeRoy August 12th, 
1861; promoted to sergeant May 26th, 1862; to first ser- 
geant January 1st, 1863; to captain April 11th, X^fvt. Dis- 
charged for disability from wounds September 23, 1865, is 
at present living in this city . William C. Rike wis per- 
haps the last soldier to be mustered out of the United 
Stales service who e ilisted from this township in the war 
for the Union, he having erriisted in Co G., 94th Iil. Vclun- 
tetr Infantry. February 15, 1864, was transferred to 37lh 
111. Infantry and was finally mustered out of the service 
May 16, 1866. He is living at the present time at Decatur, 
Illinois. 

There are three instances on record where father and 
son served as soldiers in the war and enlisted from Empire 



34 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 



township. The first being L. H. Parks and his son Benja- 
min F., who enlisted in Co. I., 39th 111. Volunteers Infantry 
September 4, 1861 . The father served three years and was 
mustered out of service at the expiration of his term, 
September 10, 1864; died ta 1887 and is buried in Oalt Grove 
cemetery. Tlie son, Benjamin F., was injured in the hand 
August 16, 1864, and was flnally discharged at the expira- 
tion of his term of service. October 18, 18fi4, emigrated to 
Kansas and died there. The second was Jesse K. Cox, 
who eniisttd from LfRoy in Company I,, 4th 111. Cavalry, 
and was transferred to Company B, 4th Cavalry on con- 
solidation, was discharged and for [several years was a 
resident of this city. He is buried In the Oilmore ceme- 
tery. His son, J. D. Cox, enlisted from this township in 
Co. B, 150th Regt. 111. Volunteers, January 25, 1H(>5, and 
was discharged at close of the war, January 16, 1866. He 
is now living in this city. The third was James Van- 
fchoyck,wHo enlisted from this city in Co. G, 94lh 111. Reyt. 
August 8, 1862. and was discharged July 17. 1865 His son, 
.Tohn, enlisted from this city April 7, 1862. in Co. f, 39th 
III. Regt. WaS taken prisoner May 16, 1863, at Drury's 
Bluff, Virginia, and was finally discharged from service 
May 7, 1865. He is still living at this date. 

Thomas Riddle, who enlisted from LeRoy in Co. K. 8th 
in. Infantry, August 1st, 1861, and was l<illf d at Fort Doa- 
elson February 16, 1862, was the Brst victim of the war who 
enlisted from this township, and the G. A. R. honors his 
name by beinsj called Thomas Riddle Post. Isaac and 
Peggy Johnson, who'lived in this ciiy when the war began: 
certainly deserve honorable mention in the war history of 
this township, they having sent five sons to do battle for 
the Union, one of which was taker prisoner and died in 
Ander jonville prison. 

Company G, 94th Illinois Volunteers was the only com- 
pany whose entire membership enlisted from this Town- 
ship and is justly entitled to be called the LeRoy company. 
Its officers when first mustered into the U^iited States ser- 
vice were: Captiin, .\aron Buckles; first lientenant, i'eter 
Vanatta; second lieutenant, M. E. Ferguson. This com- 
pany was mustered into the United States service August 
20th, 1862, and was musterrd out July 17th, 1885. 



There were two secret orders organized in this vicinity 
during the Civil war, an account of which properly be- 
longs to the war history of this locality. One of the or- 
ganizations was callee the Knights of the Golden Circle, a 
treasonable organization brought into existence by cer- 
tain persons who proposed to give aid and comfort to the 
Rebel cause bv resisting the draft, should there be any, 
and by threatening the lives of Union citizens in general. 
The other organization was called the Union League, an 
organization that became necessary provided the Golden 
Circle commited an overt act or put into execution its 
threats against Union citizens The Golden !,'ircle went 
out of business about the year lt'64 when the Veteran Vol- 
unteers returned to Empire Township to enjoy the fruits 
of a thirty days' furlough among their friends, and the 
Union League having served the purpose for which it was 
organized, also became a thing of the past. 

The township was very well represented in the Spanish- 
American war, nine young men having enlisted in the U. 
S. service as soldiers, and two as assistant surgeons — Drs. 
J. F. Jones and Bert VViley, and the enlisted men were — 
John D. White, A. McFarland. Chas. Fisher, R. L. Gibbs, 
Lod Winchell, Calvin Morris. A. L'. Coffey, Ervin Wren 
and Fred H.irland. John D. White perhaps saw as much 
of actual war as any of the bovs who enlisted from this 
Township. He enlisted in Company I, 18th U. S. Infantry, 
March 21st, 1899; sent to Columbus, Ohio, and enjiaged in 
drilling and gu ird duty two months. From there he was 
sent to California in June, and sailed for Honolulu, arriv- 
ing there July 3d, 1899,- and on the 7th sailed for Manila, 
P. I., arriving there July 21st. 1899; thence to llo Ho, Panna 
Island; was in several battles and skirmishes in which his 
command participated. He sailed for California on his 
return trip in September, 19U1, From there he was sent 
to Salt Lake City, where he was mustered out of service 
March 21st, 1902. Came home and remained for a short 
period, then re-enlisted and is at present serving another 
enlistment in the army. 

Thus ends my sketch of the war history of Empire 
Township and vicinity, and may the sympathy of all our 
people ever be with the boys who place their lives on the 
altar of their country. 



LA. Rike b Son 

The Leading Florists 


* 


jyLvHJjfljg '* 


>iA^*^ ''•*-.".. ^ '...., 4^J^^^Hl 


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[ That's All ] 1 



MRS. MAUD MARTIN 

MILLINERY EMPORIUM 



Finest and Most up-to- 
date line of ladies hats 
and Millinery Goode 



LeRoy, ^ Illinois 



THEHISTORICALMEMOIRE 35 

Inventions ^ /H 

"By Charltj WllHamj 

^ ^ 4t 



\_, HE subject assigned to tne by this honorable body is, 
to say the least, a very prosy one — one that admits 
of very little elaboration, and the preface can not 
be made very interestinu, further than a statement of 
facts. The matter of '• Inventions, " as 1 take It, is not 
to be construed to apply only to those which have been 
administeri d upon at the Patent-right office, but to any 
thing in tl e form and nature of original ideas. Many val- 
uable inventions and discoveries at different periods of the 
world's history have been given lo the world for the bene- 
fit of mankind in general. Probably, before going further 
into the subject of inventions, it might be well for us to 
have an idea what invention is. The dictionary says that 
invention is the act of finding out or inventing. The 
contrivance of or construct'on of that which has not be- 
fore existed, and from the U. S. Supreme decisions, I take 
the following quototions: — The adoption of an old form to 
a new and useful purpose, constitutes invention. A new 
combination and arrangement of old elements to produce 
beneficial results never before attained, is evidence of in- 
vention. Many more quotations could easily be made, but 
the ones given will suffice. 

An invention may be crude, and yet beneficial, so far as 
use is concerned. The savage, who discovered the prDcess 
of making fire by rubbing two sticks together until enough 
heat was produced to give out a spark, was undoubtedly a 
true discoverer — a benefactor to his people. The man who 
made the first cause or coracle it> just as much an inventer 
as were Robert Fulton, Geoi'ge Stephenoon or George M. 
Pullman, when he invented his palace car. The matter 
of inventionsof Empire township and viciniiy [ have found 
one of some difficulty in gathering data. Some being un- 
cummunicaive and not wishing to disclose their line of 
work, so that what few facts I herewith present are more 
from persondl knowledge than anything else. 

One of the first inventions coming within my knowl- 
edge was that known as Pugsley's Patent. 1 have been 
unable to classify. the Pugsley machine. Onething^ I am 
sure of — it was not a "horseless "carriage — and yet it 
could have been worked by a mule. This machine or ve- 
hicle or carriage or whatever the inventer chooses to call 
it, received its motive power from ahorse walking upon 
the deck of the carriage, turning a capstain arrange- 
ment that communicated with cog gearing to the rear 
wheels. This wheel was intended asa sort of stage coacO 
to make daily trips from LeKoy to Bioomington and re- 
turn, attaining a credited speed of twenty miles an hour. 
Great things were expecteo from this contrivance, but 
apparently Mr. P. overlooked the fact that "action is 
tqual to reaction,'' and too much power .was required to 
obtain the desire 1 speed — merely another instance of 
man's proposal and God's disposal. 

The Gilmore-Padgett Corn Husker was patented some 



where in the middle 80'8. I remember this Invention very 
well, having examined it carefully at that time. This 
contrivance was undoubtedly an ingenious affair, but like 
many inventions, required too much machinery of a deli- 
cate nature, and consequently too susceptible to injury 
and breakage I never heard what became of this struc- 
ture, but suppose it to be adorning gome attic, a monu- 
ment to mistaken genius and misapplied capital. 

The corn carrier, an attachment for corn shellers, in- 
vented and patented by George and John Healea. was for 
the purpose of carrying corn from the crib to the sheller, 
doing away with having to make so many changes or set- 
tings during one job. This machine, or some modifica- 
tion of it, is in general use. 

Probably the best known and widely used of the inven- 
tions of our citizens is the Needle Threader, invented and 
manufactured by Coffey Bros., of LeRoy. The ' patent on 
this little device was secured about a year ago, and since 
then the owners have manufactured thousands of them. 
Very few people in L,eKoy know just how much these men 
are doing in this line. Another of Mr. Coffey's patented 
inventions is the coat and hat rack — holding the coat and 
hat so that neither could fall. Nothing much was done 
with this and was finally disposed of to other parties. Mr. 
Coffey has worked upon several other useful devises which 
he has never patented, such as an ever ready hitching 
post, also a thread cutting device for an attachment to a 
Singer sewing machine. This little thing cuts the under 
thread when you cannot reach it with knife or scissors. 

The cornplanter marker invented and manufactured 
by Charles Myers of Lelioy, fills a longfelt want in the 
lives of the farmers, giving them an implement that will 
make a plain mark regardless of clods. Mr. Myers has 
several other inventions, one being a machine for making 
wire fences. 

One of the most curious little devices I ever saw was ball 
and socket soldering device for hard soldering eccentric 
articles which cannot be held in the hand while being 
soldered. This holder consisted of four arms on a base 
each one having a ball and socket attachment to the base, 
and were so constructed that figures cannot express the 
limitless number of positions into which the arms could 
be placed. The inventer of the above was P. W. Duke, 
formerly in the watch repair business in this city. This 
same gentleman invented and patented a thread-cutting 
thimble after he left LeRoy. Mr. Otto Zims has made ap- . 
plication for patent on an automatic measuring milk can, 
one that will measure any quantity being poured from the 
Can. The last invention coming under my notice is that of 
an automatic music turning music rack invented by C. E. 
Williams and patent pending under title of C. E. Williams 
and W. B. L'St. This rack is adjustable to mnsic of any 
si^e and will turn six pages of music. 



Humphrey 
. . . <5 List 



Real Prstate and 

EXCHANGE BROKERS 



LeR^oy, 

Illinois 



35 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 

Results of Tiling a a a 



"By Joseph Ktrnan 
^ ^ ^ 




10 wish to speak of some of the benefits derived 
from the use of open ditches, and more especi- 
ally of the use of tile in McLean county and 
central Illinois. When I 
came from Ohio to Illinois in 
1854, a larjje portion of these 
prairies were untillal?le and 
and almost impassab'e, for 
the want of drainage.' Wide 
impassable sloughs and ponds 
of water were numerous in 
every direction. They were 
the home of the wild ducks, 
geese, muskrats: frogs and 
gerniK for the propagation of 
fever and ague. We also 
had swarms of mosquitos and 
green headed horse flies to 
contend with and plenty of 
rattle snakes. This was all 
changed by the use of tile. 

Instead of the croak and 
clatter (if the frog?, and the 
gentle and persuasive hum of 
the moi-quitoand the whir of 
the rattle snake, we have the 
coo of the dove, the cheering 
notes of tlie lark and the 
sweet song of the mocking 
bird, also a vast stretch of 
rich and productive fields, 
where one may plow one-half 
a mi'e without stopping, in- 
stead of turning the mud at 
the edfie of the pond or the 
slough after go^ng a few rods 

as in olden limes. The first tiling done here was not 
entirely satisfactory to the farmer. Much of it had to 
be taken up. From three to five inch tile was used, while 
nothing less than four to six inch tile should have been 



Jojeph K. 



put down. The demand for larger tile has been on the 
increase for several years. I think the first long string of 
fifteen inch tile (3,50 rods) laid in West township. I bought 

the tile of the Heaters, of 
Eloomington, and had them 
put down in 1894. 

Since that time there have 
been many miles of that size 
tile, and even larger, put 
down. The farmers are be- 
ginning to realize the bene- 
fits derived from tiling the 
larger water ways and out- 
lets. 

I think more and more 
large tile will be used dur- 
ing the coming years, 

Previous to the use of tile 
unimproved prairie land was 
worth only from ten dollars 
to twenty-five dollars per 
acre. Had it not been for 
the general use of this ti e, 
this same land would not be 
worth more than half what 
it is worth today. 

Illinois was considered a 
very unhealthy state to live 
in and immigr.ition would 
pass ou further west, not 
finding sufBcient inducement 
to locate here. 

A most remarkable change 

came over the face of the 

pairie, when drained, ai^d 

Illinois is now known as the 

garden spot of the United States. It is the happy home 

of ni()re independent farmers than any other part of God's 

Creation. 





IJ^SVRAJSICE 
All Kinds 




Jno. B. ChicK, 



IJ^SVRAJ^CE 
Lotefest "Prices 



1 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 

Historical Reminiscence 



37 




"By^. 2). Ba<«r 



If 



Y father, Dr. Isaac Baker, then living in Blootning- 
■ ton, having written to me while I was in Iowa, 



V^ 



that there was no store in LeRoy and that he 
thouglit it would be g^ood point to start a general store, I 
came back about December 1, 1843, and formed a partner- 
ship with E E. Greeriman, who had been peddling around 
over the country selling groceries, drygoods, and such 
things as were usually carried by peddlers in those days. 
The tirm was known as Bakeri& Greenroan. There were 
no store buildings lo rent and no buildings fixed to sell 
drygoods in, but there were old buildings scattered over 
the town plot, some occupied by families and some de- 
serted There was an old building that had been occupied 
by a saloon, with shelving and counters on one side. It 
was a room 18 x 20 feet, situated on the north-side of Main 
street on first lot from the corner opposite the present 
hite of Van Dt venter's drug store. We rented thisbuild- 
ing of James Wiley for one dollar per month. I remained 
in Bloomington that winter to go to Dr, Hobb's school, 
studying arithmatic — loss and gain— and common branch- 
es usually taught those days. I would attend through the 
week and hand out goods bought of my brother, Charles 
Baker, on Saturdays. Mr. Greenman run the store while 
I was away. We boarded at a the hotel run by Esquire 
Hirain Buck, located on the ground now occupied by the 
First National bank. We paid one dollar per week each, 
for board, as there was no other store here, Mr. Buck was 
anxious to have us come. We boarded with him for about 
one year. Uncle Silas Walters then rented the liotel and 
we boarded with this genleman for nearly a year. 

From there went to board with Dr. Burnep-, who occu- 
pied thd baildiag o^aal b/ u*, b)urii!; of Ellwool Grist, 
who run it as a boarjing hojse, and was located on 
the east end of the first block south of the present site of 
Jones' blacksmith shop. On the same block that the 
b' tokiinith sli )p is locite 1, E Igar Conkling had set out a 
mulberry grove, preparing to start a silkworm industry — 
which never amounted to much. 

We only occupied the sa'oon building about one year, 
then we bou^jht a lot adjjining the west end of the Public 
Square, of Hilary Ball, and built a wooden building 18 or 
20 feet wide by 32 or 40 feet long, afterwards building an 
addition on the rear of the building. We built on the east 
part of the lot leading room on the comer for a brick 
building We occupied the wooden building about six 
ye irs then we built the brick on the corner which we oc- 
cupied for a number of years. On .Vlarch 14. 1848, I married 
L lura A. E Iwards and went to housekeeping in the dwell- 
ing that stood on the corner adjo ning the bui.ding which 
we had first used for our store — this dwelling was owned 
by James Wiley who hid m )ved to his farm sjutheast of 
Lelloy— this dwelling had two rooms; the front part was 
hewn logs and th.; b ick roo n of frami. J )hn C. B lidlevr 
had occupied this Iwelling b.;fore I rented it. In the fall 
of thissamii year I built my house on north side of Public 



Square. In about the year of 1838 A. Grldley laid out the 
original town of LeRoy and later Conkling's addition was 
added. 

In about 1860 I traded my Interest in town property to 
Mr. Greenman for his interest in farm property, as we 
owned the most of our property in partnership. Mr. Green- 
man tiaded the brick building and goods shortly after- 
wards to Mr. Barnett and went back into the wooden 
building adj >ining which we had formerly occupied, and 
run a grocery store. Shortly after we started our store, 
James Carpenter and Henry Stevens came to LeRoy and 
run a dry goods and notion store. They did not remain 
more than six months. Then Dr. Dodson came from 
the north part of Illinois and run a general merchandise 
store in the room formerly occupied by Carpenter and 
Stevens opposite our store. 

The next store building was built and occupied \si A. C. 
King ( father of your esteemed citizen, E. W. King) on 
the lot opposite Morris' store. The Parks Brothers, Benj. 
and Harvey, came from Indiana, and built on the corner 
opposite Keenan's bank. J. Keenan bought an interest 
with Barnett and they conducted the business for a year or 
morf. 

The only church in LeRoy when I went there was the 
M. E. church, and was situated on the lots now occupied 
by A. H. Morris' residence. It was a building about forty 
feet square. Thev sol<l this structure to Eiias Wall, who 
tore it down and moved it to his farm two or three miles 
out and made a barn of it, after the M. E. Church members 
had built the two story brick building, now occupied by 
Masonic order. The Masons organized their lodge in 1855 
with seven charter members, as follows:— Dr. Cheney, 
Hiram Buck, E. E- Greenman, James Ha'.el, Pleasant 
Watt, S. D. Bdker and Dr. Noble. I had been a member 
of the Masonic order in iiloomington. for about six years, 
before we organized the lodge in LeKoy. I am the only 
charter member of this order now living and am in my 
eighty-fifth year. 

The first mill was built, I think, in 1839 by Elisha and 
Simeon Gibbs, and was run as a saw and grist mill. It 
was located on the slough in the south part of town, near 
the Harvey Parks residence. 

I do not remember much about tho old band or who the 
members were. I was in the band for awhile, but my 
memory is not clear about the other members, except 
three, J. V. Smith and K. E. Greenman, who played sbcond 
alto, and myself, who played first a'.to. 

Some of the old settlers that were in LeRoy when I first 
w.ent there were as follows:— James Wiley, Esq. Hiram 
Buck, Ashby Neal, Amos Neal, Alisha Gibbs, Simeon Gibs, 
Moses Kimler, Dr. Weldon, Mr Hutton, Mr. Conkiing and 
his sons, Edgar, Stephen, James, Charley, Aaron and Dr. 
Conkiing, Elwood Grist, Dr. D Edwards, Wm. Clark, John 
C. Uadoeley. John W. Baddeiey and old Mrs. Barnett, the 
mother of T. J. Barnett. 



. . ^ . ^ 


1 THE EAGLE 


A'DVE'RTISE j 


SUBSCRIBE 



38 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 



Geology 



Bj- XO. E. Ltax>iU 

^^ a^ i^» 



(^ HAKESPEARE gave u? the "Sermons in Stones." 
^■^^ It is a fact wonderful preachments are made 
,11 ^ to those who stop and read. They are not hard to 
understand either. The 540 feet revealed by Mc- 
Lean county coal shafts can furnish many sermons, show- 
ing how the powers that be did things in the long ago. 
The stonework goes on perhaps 10 feet below the bottom 
of those shafts before reaching foundation granite, and 
from these we can hardly guess how much more story 
would he told if the earth crust is one mile thick. Wonder- 
ful stories are waiting for the readers in this closed book 
u ider our feet. The stories are fascinating, too, even for 
the average reader if he would open the bo ik and look 
thoughtfully around. The distinguished modern n.ituranbt, 
Agass'z, was askpd to go abroad with 
a friend— his expenses being paid — 
for a vacation. He said he could not 
spare the lime. He said he wanted to 
explore his bait. yard. He found 
there in fragments of stones the rec- 
ord of miny thousand years. He 
found enough material to fill a book 
and enjoyed it more than a trip 
abroad. 

A very brief writing about what 
the lajers are that are seen in the 
Bloomington coal mini s the short dis 
tance they go would make a good vol- 
ume. If the writer of this knew much 
about geology he would be able to 
write enough on this suhj-'ct to make 

le historical society report. 

It is believed by scientfio men 
North America began as a group of 
islands rising out of the ocean. Many 
of them were volcanic, pouring matter 
into the space bttween, forming lay- 
ers under the water, thus laying the 
foundation granite. The Hawaiian 
islands sho v the method of work. 

Greenland, Eastern Canada, New England, the rocky back- 
bone of the continent, and other parts show they were 
such instances. The islands grew, the spaces were filled, 
depressions and upheavels occurred making deep basins 

1 ke Hudson bay, the great lakes, the Mississippi valley 
and the high lands. Water action ground the rocks and 
cut, wajs here and there and piled the layers upon each 
other, making the continent. Tropical heat and arctic 
c lid were agents working in their strange way through 
imneisurable time, leaving the positive evidence that 
can be easily seen on the face of things. 

Our surface mould you all know is the produci of vege- 
table growth and decay It is deepest where the vegeta- 
tion grew fastest and short lived, and remained undis- 
turbed in its decay. The prairie mould, the marsh lands 
and the swamps were thus formed. Think how long the 
process went on to give the results we know. The high 
timber tracts show less mould, because the vegetation, the 
trees principally, grew OesS' rapidly and furnished less 
matter for decay than other places, ind besides the rain 
washes the little from the ridges and high land and hill- 




By. E. Leaxllft 



table matter undecayed because water arrested that pro- 
cess. 

Clay, is a general term, meaning rock has been ground 
to finest powder. Its color and nature depends on the kind 
of rock ground and the minerals included. The red clay 
of bluegrass Kentucky is heavily charged with iron. The 
tough, clean clay, that makes such good brick in Illinois^ 
is made from bowlder dust that was ground in the ice age. 
Each manner of soil or stone might be explained by telling 
the process of formation and the ingredients. Slate, shele, 
chalk, are different forms of sediment colored and formed 
by different processes and different ingredients— rea'ly 
clay or rock dust. Black slate is colored by vegetable 
matter, etc. Bowlders are rolled about, and little broken 
gravel are little bou'ders worn smooth; 
sand is cracked rock, and whit be- 
comes powder is the soil, or deposited 
under water becomes rock. The lay- 
ers of sand, gravel, clay, soapstone, 
limestone, sandstone, coal, shale, 
varying in thickness from 1 foot to 
76 feet; 1 foot of lime rock or fire 
clay or shale or sulphurous rock, and 
61 feet feet blue clay and 76 feet blue 
clay, 39 feet soapstone, 35 feet blue 
clay, 62 feet soapstone, etc., in the 
thirty-six layers laid bare, tell an in- 
t "resting story of the long time before 
our day, when these things under our 
feet were being built by the powers 
that be. 

Nearly 300 feet below the surface 
coal is found, again 100 feet deeper, 
and again about 125 feet further, and 
perhaps more further down it migtit 
be found. The coal deposits are only 
three or four feet thick. Coal is 
clearly vegetab'e in its origin. The 
vegetation was most unlike what we 
find today. It grew in water ages 
ago and decayed there. It was kept from atmospheric 
action and our coal is the product. The foal seams iidi- 
cate in that day intensely hot tropical conditions prevailed 
here. The vegetation grew in shallow lakes or br^ickish 
sea waters and had huge dimensions — ferns SO to ICO feet 
high and 3 to 4 feet thick — and were quickly grown and 
soon decayed. Mammoth ferns and huge club itfosses and 
other gigantic plants grew and left some of their forms 
for us to see what manner of vegetable life left the slimy 
matter over large areas— the coal fields of today. Where 
there are coal beds we know there were lakes and seas 
with this strange vegetation. If the lake or sea water 
that furnished Bloomington coal extended this way we 
1 ave coal beds under us. If the water deposited more 
matter here than there we may have more and better 
coal. That remains to be seen. The tropical climate that 
made the vegetation was followed by floods of water arctic 
cold— the ice flowing from the north ground the rocks to 
powder and the water spread the dust — clay— over the 
region from the Rocky Mountains to the Atlantic and as 
far south as West Virginia. Tae hills were cut down and the 



sides to the level ground. Peat bogs are masses of vege- valleys were fi. led— "brought low and exalted." Leveling 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIRE 



39 



went on and doubttesg upheaving In places, also. The mlllg 
of the Ice age ground slowly, but ground exceeding fine 
and a lot too, to make 76 feet of clay here at one time, 
and to make 62 another, and all the various rocks, soils, 
Bind and gravel and bowlders. In this region there are 
rjcks that undoubtedly came from Lake Superior, and 
men feel sure they can Identify the cliffs they came from. 
When clay covered the vegetable deposits and kept from 
dicay — coal was the outcome, in time. The tropical and 
arctic conJitlons must have followed each other several 
times. Notice we have coal about 300 feet below the sur- 
face, then 400, then near 540, and perhaps it might be found 
again and again. Eight d tfereat times clay was deposi- 
ited showing how many times similar action went on as 
well as modided formations of similar material at other 
times. 

Gas has been found near here. Gas and oil are sup- 
posed to be products of the same material that gave coal. 
The shrinking of the earth or crowding in places squeezed 
out the oil and it was retained by sonjethiug near it. Gas 
is a production of oil— not coal— or that is the prevailing 
belief. Oil and gas often come from the same well. They 
are not always found — yes seldom found in immediate con- 
nection with coal. The depo.-it from which they ifsue is 
a shale, an immense stratum of whicn extends over a large 
section from Westent Pennsylvania across Ohio and fndi- 
ana, northward to Michigan and southward as far as Cin- 
cinnati — perhaps it is beneath us here — time will tf 11. 

Of course a great deal of this has to be imagined, so 
little digging has been done, a great part of it generaliza- 
tion resting on small, perhaps sure foundation. It takes 
imagination to shed light in these dark places. Often it 



needs of such study, so mighty has been the work, so great 
has been the time used carrying on this tremenduons pro- 
cess of building layer on layer through ages. 

Near Bloomlngton, the remains of a forest have been 
found under 60 feet of earth, AtJoliet, a tree trunk was 
found 30 feet below the surface, also a cedar forest under 
20 feet of clay marl. Think how much Ice ii,ust have 
moved to grind so much rock to powder and how much water 
to spread 61, 76, 92 and 39 feet deposits, burying forests, 60, 
30 and 20 feet below the surface, Qjr imagination is too 
weak to comprehend, our vocabulary too insignidcant to 
declare, even faintly or briefly, the history of this vicinliy. 
A gigantic plan has been followed; inconceivable forces 
worked building this vicinity, county, st ite and country. 
What would be more fascinating than the story of this 
black soil, our clays, the sands and sand stone, the gravel 
and limestone, the soapstone, sFate, shale and coal, that 
underlie our feet. We are wading through and walking 
on mysterious combinations of great agencies in immeas- 
urable time. Plain earth, mud, rock and sand have won- 
derful stories, marvelous history for those who stop to 
lead — more charmi;ig than romance or fairy tale that 
man's mind can conceive. They bear the stamp of the 
Infinite Power. 

These are a few hints hastily written by one who knows 
little about it, but wants to know more of the wonderful 
and most interesting, yet simple story that Is to be read 
from the things under our feet. It interests me to know 
I can dig with my heel as deep as the works of hundreds 
of years, and push a shovel down through the work of ages. 
So much historical work is thus before our eyes, we should 
stop and read the marvelous story. 



is hard for imagination to be great enough to meet the 
Bloomlngton coal shafts show the the surface of this vicinity is built somewhat after the following order: 



Formation — Peet 

Surface soil, sand and gravel 19 

Biue clay 61 

Smd and water 4 

Blue clay 76 

Soapstone 39 

Lime rock.. I 

Hlue clay 35 

Yellow Clay 15 

Soft shell rock 4 

Soft uray sand stone 11 

Hard limestone 12 

Sjapstone 5 

About 540 feet. 



Formation — Feet 

Coal vein 3 

i'ire clay 9 

Gray sandstone 4 

Soapstone 22 

Dark shale 8 

Soapstone...., 9 

Fireclay 

Gray slate.. , 

Klack slate.. 

Coal vein 

Fireclay ~ 

Slate 



10 

22 

5 

4 

10 

3 



Formation — Feet 

Fireclay 4 

Sand rock 20 

Soap stone 62 

Black slate 2 

Fireclay 1 

Sulphurous rock 11 

Gray slate I 

Shale 1 

Lime rock 2 

Slate 2 

Soapstone 6 

Coal, 3 vein 3 



Indians 



'Bjr W, B. Leaitm 



V^, H K saying, "The blood of no McLean county settler 
was shed by Indians." or '-The Indians the early set- 
lers met were harmless hunters and beggars passing 
along the trail that led through this vicinity," wou d 
make one think the story is short, commonplace and tame. 
O I the other hand, this is the Hi^ld of thrilling history of 
wild times when there was tragedy eniugh to make up 
for the peaceful times of the first settlers. The names, 
*'01d Town," and the '"Old Indian Fort," lead us to a page 
of history equal to anything found in other places where 
thrillin,' incidents abound, and make the places rich in 
etories of adventure and peril and dreadful suffering and 
death. 



The Kickapoo Indians, found here by the first settlers, 
were those who sold their lands east of here and moved 
westward from theirriver and forest homes to the prairies. 
They were not like their people of the same name of the 
prairies, who lived in the "Old Town — who built the "Old 
Fori" in earlier days The Prairie Kickapoos, who held the 
central part of Illinois, between the Illinois and the Wa- 
bash rivers, were a different class from those who were 
able to live in contact with the white man, and never 
were reconciled to live near civilization. The French were 
never able to pacify them. They fought the French, 
English and Americans and their Indian allies. They 
ravaged the borders of Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and the 



40 



THE HISTORICAL MEMO IRE 



Illinois were practically exteTminated by them even when 
helped by the French in their first occupancy of 
Southern Illinois. They were energetic, talented Indians, 
industrious, better armed than their fellows, good hunt- 
ers and bitter fighters— first in the fray and last in the 
fi^rht — and one of the cleanest of Indians. With the Poxes 
and the Sacs they were the terror of the whites and their 
Indian allies. They were adepts at building palisades for 
defense, and with tbeir other qualities you can see that it 
would be a b'oody chapter that told of their occupation 
of this vicinity. They went into voluntary exile when 
beaten beyond the Mississippi, when civilization and In- 
dian foes allied attempted to exterminate them, and con- 
tinued in. their descendents the bitter warfare against the 
the whites. In the years of victory and defeat great 
must have been the bloodshed and butchery in this fair 
section of rur state, when ttte wars of hatred and exterm- 
ination were being waged with the French and Potta- 
watamies and Ottawas and Chiopeways and Americans. 
Later they had to give place when they became very 
much reduced in numbers— but with spirit unbro'ten. 

'Old Town" was the capitol, the "Old Fort" was their 
place for defense. The old maps located the great Kicka- 
poo capitol near the headwaters of the Sangatr.on, and 
there is no other place to claim it. Tradition of Indians 
point here. A Kentuckian, who visited here in 1840, de- 
clared be had been a captive there, somewhere about 1800. 
It was waven into a pleasing story by a school teacher of 
later time, and published in a Peoria paper, but the 
romance had its foundation in the romantic, tragic and 
horrible doings that went on here in those early dajs. 

Tlie capitol shows its remains over a space of a mile 
square. The acre area of the fort and Us surroundings of 
graves, inside and outside, and the presence.of arrowheads 
and tomaha-'ks .'nd bullets and gun barrels indicate the 
strife that went on. The large Indian burying ground 
shows the largeness of the occupancy. 

A member of a company of rangers of the war of 1812 
tells of the burning of the fort, and the oldest settlers re- 
members the hollows in the bank of earth where the posts 
had been. The Kickapoos, at the time of the settlement, 
knew nothing of it. The Illinois did not do such things — 
only the fierce Prairie Kickapoos so built. We know many 
captives, white and Indian, were brought here from their 
expeditions that were carried on in all directions by these 
cruel, inveterate haters, and we can readily understand 
the frightful barbarity that was practiced as great as 
was ever recorded or known. A great unwritten chapter 
of human suffering, torture at the stake, running the 
gauntlet, burning alive— all the savage Indian knew so 
well how to inflict on his captive, white or Indian. Enough 
transpired then to more than make up for the peaceful 
attitude of those who came after them and were in con- 
tact with the earliest settlers. 



First Band 



J 



'By _/t. B. ConKling 

N about 1?60, the brass band was organized with 
about ten members, J. V. Smith, Ben Parks. A. E. 
Lewis, A. B. Conkling, C. S. M )orehouse and S. D., 
Baker, are the only ones I now remember. A. Bl 
Conkling was made leader and Philip Kadal, of Blooming- 
ton, our first teacher — and a fine one he was. He wou' " 
come from Bloomington and stay three days for the mo. 
est sum of ten dollars, coming every other week. We 
progressed so far as to murder several pieces in a short 
time— America, Star Spangled Banner, Dixie, etc., got 

hurt badly, but after 
afewmonths we 
took to the top of 
the Parks building- 
and made the air 
tremble with our ef- 
forts. Later people 
said we did fine. 

I thtnk it was in 
1862 we were called 
to play at the burial 
of soldiers of the 
the Civil war. Mr. 
Hartsock,- I think, 
was the- first one. 
We went to Cheny's 
Grove to plav for 
his funeral. Later 
we played at the 
burial of several oth- 
ers. We played at 
several picnic par- 
ties and we got a 
good dinner for it, 
but were not served 
with money at 
any time, it was a •' free gratis " job on all occasions; our 
pay was an apprecia'ive audience, and filthy lucre was 
never given to help pay fur our training, but we got 
along very nicelv, nevertheless, until September, 1861, 
w^en we removed to Champaign. After that time the 
organizition was continued and prospert d for years, as I 
was told, and learnd from friends from time to time; and 
am told the onranization still lives. 

Would greatly enj )y attending the meeting to which 
you invite me, and especially hear the band play which I 
hel(ied to organize forty-four years ago, and to meet those 
friends whom [ used to know and mingle with in my young- 
er davs, and whose names and faces I love to remember 
and which have always been very dear to me because of 
life time associations, 

No'i'E — The tvpe-writer included the above letter in the 
article written by N. G. Humphrey. 




^. "Bf ConK}ing 



ED GUARD 



FRANK BISHOP 



GUARD & BISHOP 

HARDWARE AND IMPLEMENT DEALERS 



LE ROY 



ILLINOIS 



THE HISTORICAL ME MOIRE 



41 



The Ctxmbertcind 

Vresbyterian Chxxrch 

"By Mrj. E. B. younj 



/'JTTMriEnLAND Presb- terian's were the first to es- 
j [ t.ibiish re<j>''^r services hpre. This church was 

VJ J organized by Rev. John Merry about the year 
1S32. It was called Sa't Creek Congreffation. 
The first elder in Mackinaw Presbytery was William 
Walker, in the year 1837, which met at Shiloh, now called 
Hopedale. Neil J.)hnson was the Moderator and James 
MiD )wen, Cerk. Bi' petition from Sa't Creek church the 
Prt-sbvtery changed 11= name to LeRoy, from which time 
its history is known by tne o!df r members of this church; 
Prom the time of its orjjan'zilion to tti ^present date this 
church has been represented in Mackinaw Presbytery by 
thirty-nine e'ders. The I^ev R. D. Taylor, Uev.'s Archer, 
Neal, Johnson and James Divis were the earliest minis- 
ters of this denomination workin;^ in this place. The nu- 
merous Buckles families, with many others, were the first 
to interest themselves in s?curinif a hou^e of worship and 
regular services. Rev. R. L). Taylor, father of our es- 
teemed townsman, Dr. E. K. M. Taylor, and familiarly 
known and belovt-d as "tlncle B )bby," was ordained by the 
Mackinaw Presbytery in 1S38 and served faithfuily as pas- 
tor for many years. Thomas Buckles and James Rutledge 
were the first elders. J. D. Baker and Peter Bucklf s were 
the leaders in bui'ding this church, Wm. Elisha Gibbs and 
son, Simeon Gibbs, building the frame work and placing 
the seats, Wm. Smith enclosing it. No one seems to 
father the arcoitecture of this old church, which was one 
of the oddities of the age. It was forty feet square, the 
entrance almost opening in the alleyway. The windows 
had fifty lights of glass wliich were square, the pulpit 
away up to the ceiling. Rev. F. J. Johnson was then in- 
stalled as pastor, which position he maintained for twelve 
yeart-. During his pastorate a neat brick church was built, 
in 1863. Downing and Hardy were tlie architects and 
builders. Church membershihp increased and Sabbath 
School mai-tained. Rev. Marlow, Best and Kimberlin 
preaching successively for a period of years. Connected 
with this church as part of their work and under their aus- 
pices was the L'^Roy Seminary, an institution for liigher 
education than the common schools afforded. Rev. Patton 
from Tennessee having first charge, from 1854 to 1859, 
with several assistants. This seminary was a success un- 
til the building up of the graded schools. Pre«byteriani^m 
stands today the established religion of Scotland. It has 
its ups and dOwns here the same as there. When Charles 
the First persisted in forcing the prayer book upon them 
until he led to a revolution, tie Scots stopped their ears 
rather than listen to the service. This church is now com 
posed of as strong, sturdy members as Scotland could 
boast, and they enjoy the privilege of worshipping accord- 
ing to the dictates of their own consciences, in a grand 
and comparatively new church, erected in l'::98, a magnifi- 
cent edifice which its builders and suppi rt^rs may well 
cherish with a feeling of pardonable pride and pleasure. 
This splendid church was erected during the successful 
pastorship of Rev. J. E. Aubrey. As a minister he repre- 
sented in his personality a remarkable enthusiasm, which 
resulted in great good to the town and community and es- 
pecially a benefit to the C. P. Church. The church or- 
ganization at present consists of about 20O active members 
and is in a prosperous and thriving condition. The pres- 
ent pastor is Rev. Waiter E. Spoonts, whose earnest work 
aud Christian character, is forming a lasting impression 
upon the community. 



The First Settlers of Le'Roy 

"By Thomas L. "BucK^ 

The first settlers of LeKoy and its business men traced 
thmugh a numb t of years, from 1835 to 1850: 

Edgar Cjnkling and family; Amos-Neal and family; 
Hiram Back and family; Leonard P.' Morrow and family; 
Dr. M r m and famil\ ; Jas. Wiley and family, Moses Kim- 
ler and family; James Newel and tamil> ; D ivison Gilmore' 
and family: Catherine B irrette and family: Marshall' 
Whittaker and family; Jno. W. Baddel.ey jind family; H ir- ' 
mon Ruck and family; Wm. Worlis and fami!\ ; Hiram Pat- 
terson and fdmil_\ ; Thos. .Sperry and family; Juo. Vannote 
and family ; Stephen Conkling and family ; Dr. Weldon and 
family. Amos Neal had the first little stock of dry goods 
in LeRoy in 1835, he sold to Edgar Conkling who continued ■ 
the business for a number of years. Jno W. Baddeley lo- 
cated a town one half mile south of the southwest corner ' 
of Leiioy and called it Monroe and started a store, t.ut 
when he seen LeKoy was to be the town he pulh d his build- 
ing to LeRoy and located on the old corner west of the 
new Town Hall, and Baddeley & Son were merchants in 
LeRoy for many years. Alexander Council was the first 
tailor. Leonard P. Morrow was the first saddler and har- 
ness maker, butcher, hunter and story teller. Catherine 
Barnette was a tailoress. She wtf-i a grand and noble - 
woman, ever ready to help in sickness or health. But few 
are living today to cherish her memory. Wm. V orks was ' 
a speculator in a small way. Hir.m Patterson was a 
wheelwright and farmer.- Thos. Sperry kept a doggery 
and so'd whiskey by the drink, quart or gallon. Jno. Van- 
note was a charcoal burner. Stephen Conkling was a far- • 
mer. Dr. Weldon a physician and surgeon. Tlios. Spen- 
ser was a well digger. Moses Kimler was the ffrat black- 
smith; Harmcra Buck and D.ivison Gilcome came soon after 
in the same trade. Daniel Proctor was a carpenter. Hi- 
ram Buck was the first tavern keeper, postmaster. Justice 
of the Peace. Dr. Moran was the fitst physician. He left 
soon. Dr. Weldon came ne.xt and was here several years. 
Jas. Wiley kept a little store and was a farmer besides. 
Jas. Newell was a Baptist preacher. Moses Kimler was 
a blacksmith and farmer. Davison Gilmore was a black- 
smith and farmer. Harmon Buck was a blacksmith and 
doctor under the old Tomsonian system and was very suc- 
cessful. He was the father of Mrs, Jno. Kline, who still 
lives here. Cheney Thomas was school teacher, Justice 
of the Peace and at one time elected Tax Collector and 
Sheriff of McLean countv and held bothoflices at the same 
time. Marshall Whittaker was a farmer. 

From 1840 to 1850 



Dr. Burns, father of our townsman, Jno. Burrfs and 
Mrs. Dr. Taylor, was a prominent physician here in the 
early forties. T.J. Barnette, son of Catherine Barnette, 
was a farmer and stock dealer at an early date. Fill wood 
and Isaac Grist were carpenters. Elisha Gibbs and sonj, 
Simeon and David, were millwrights by trade. They built 
the first steam saw and grist mill and wool carding ma- 
chine attached in 1840. Jerry Greenman was the first cabi- 
net maker: Calvin H impson came later and eneaged in 
the same business. Dr. Edwards came in 1840, was also a 
methodist preacher; Dr Albert Luce came later: Dra. 
Cheney and Noble located in TeRoy late iu the forties and 
were prominent physicians for years. Julius White sold 
goods in l'<40: Carpenter and Risinger sold goods a litt'e 
later; Baker and Greenman began selling goods in 1843: 
Bigsby Dodson id 1845: Jno. Burton, grandfather of Jno. 



42 



THE HISTORICAL MEMOIR K 



Burns »3ld good* In 1849; then came T. J. Barnette and 
Jaa. Kimler. Six ot the abo-ie men were selling goods in 
LeRoy in 1850. At an early date two long haired men lo- 
cated here. Their busiuess seemed to be horse stealing 
and counterfeiting, but they seen they were watched 
closely so left between two d^ys. In the early days horse 
racing was quite a business. A beautiful one-half mile 
track encircled this little village. The races were running 
races, usually one mile and repeat. A path was made for 
each horse by dragging a log to smooth the surface. Men, 
women and children could stand In their own doors and see 
the racing-. Black Hawk, Jim t^iow, McKlnnie Roan, 
Copper bottom. Tiger-whip, Lady Jane, Clear the Kitchen, 
Roan-leg, were names of some of the running horses. Mrs. 
Fannie Wertz of Bloomington, Mrs. S. F. Barnum and 
Mary Patterson of LeRoy are daujihters of Hiram Patter- 
son. Mr. Patterson deserves s^-eclal mention as one of the 
early business men of LeRoy. He planned and built the 
first horse mill that ground corn for all ttte community. 
He invented a horse power turning lathe that he used in 
his business; he Invented a mill to squeeze the juice out of 
corn stalks to make molasses; could stock a plow; make 
the wood work for a wagon; make an ox handle or a wood 
sled; make spinning wheels and reels; turn fancy posts for 
bedsteads. He was a man for the times. Frank Kimler, 
Sr., son of Moses Kimler, and my sister, Amanda Crum- 
bausjh, daughter of Hiram Buck and myself were here in 
181ti and are still living in LeRoy. The above sketch was 
written by request and entirely from memory, but in the 
main is correct. 

The 'Relic Ejchibil 

■Bjr Mr J. J. V. Smith 

The early settlers who are interested In these matters 
had a large number of old relics and newspapers on exhi- 
bition at this meeting. Among them was an old B-flat 
brass horn used by the first band in LeRoy by J. V. Smith. 
A violin 200 years old and a snuff box 125 years old, the 
property of Mrs. Kate Dudderar. Three old quilts which 
were over 50 yeais old. A woven quilt made by Oral Buck's 
grandmother, Mrs. Katherlne McConnell. A coil of rope 
H3 years old, made by Mahlon Bishop, Sr. Two old fash- 



ioned fireplace dog-Irons, the property of John McConnell 
also an old brass candle holder. A sickle sixty year.* old 
belonging to Mahlon Bishop; also an Indian hatchet found 
by his father in 1837, in Section 15, Fmpire township. An 
old two-pronged pitchfork. A garter snake captured in 
1846 and well preserved in good old rye whiskey by E E 
Greenman; also a letter dated Mey 2, 1848, to Mrs. Ruth 
Baker of Bloomington, 111., the prooerty of Mrs. Belle 
Crumbaugh. Mr. E. W. King furnished many interesting 
and valuable relics and mementos of his father's business 
life in L;K )y. An o!d slate on which he had kept his daily 
salts for over SO years; a dally register boo'c of 1830: copies 
of letters of very early dates in shorthand, done by his 
brother, C. C. King, who was at one time a shorthand re- 
porter for Henry Clay, la Washington; a letter from a 
brother of J. F. King of Terr.- Haute, Ind., to A. C. King 
of ShetBeld, Conn., dated July 25, 1830, having only a circle 
statup and marked (paid 2.5 cts) postage; an old newspaper, 
the Hamf shire Gazette of August 26, 1845, being sin col- 
umns to the page and four pages; another, the New York 
Weekly Tribune of Nov. 3C, 1844, which has eight pages of 
solid reading matter with a few small card advertise- 
ments; a land deed of sheepskin, dated Nov. 11, 18?9. an^- 
signed by Martin V'anBuren, Books of many kinds; --of 
dates from 1820 to 1845, belonging to A. C. King, and a 
grammar compiled by Mr. A. C. King, of date of 1845. 
Some two dozen old legal documents, some signed by 
Thomas Carlin, governor and A. P. Fiske, Sec. of State. 
An old fashioned plow over 70 years old, belonging to G. 
W. Simpson. An old German bible, which is believed to 
have been brought to America in the Mayflower by the an- 
cestors of L. A. Rike. Anavory headed cane once carried 
by Mr. Daniel Crumbaugh, who was a soldier in the war 
of 1812, and who came to Buckles' Grove March 6, 1830. 
This cane is now the property of Mrs. F. M. Crumbaugh. 
An old double handled cross cut saw, belonging to Thos. 
Buck. An old book— The Author's Religion— thought to 
have been written about 1318, by Eleazar Howard, the 
great grandfather of Earl Riddle, but the book is the 
cherished property of E. W. King. An old gun bearing 
this mark "H. Mock, No. 1007" made in England, and 
brought to America in 1851 by H. Grizeelle. Also an old 
slaw knife made in Pitchcome, England, and brought to 
this covntry by Mrs. Martin Grizzelle. A woolen bed 
spread woven in 1853 by Mrs. Corray, the mother of Mrs, 
Thornton Clark, who then lived near Pekin, Illinois. 




JOHN S. HARPE,R'S 



=^ 



Justice Court and Marriage Parlors, i"c;ited in the Town 

Hall and Citv Building, southeast of Park, LeK'oy. McLean 
countv, Illinois, better known as the new LeRoy court house 



Phone 
No. 202 



P 0. 
Lock Box 

Also, collections at home and abroad, and 
prompt returns. Pensions and pension 
vouchers attended to. 

Courtyrofn 7 a m to 7 p m 










Specialiiy, "Pottle and Amicable 









i 



A.M. W I L KES 
Dentist 



ORGANIZED 1868 



■Phc 



101 



LE -ROy. ILL. 



6. C. LIST 



Manufrcturer and dealer 
in Harness and Saddlerv, 
Collars, Whips, Blankets. 
ROBES, ETC., E T C 



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LEROY, ILLIIMOIS ^ ^ 



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